Vietnam Police Foil Bid To Build Major Online Scam Hub
Hanoi-Vietnamese police have disrupted a group suspected of preparing to establish a large-scale online scam centre linked to criminal networks operating in Cambodia, authorities said on Friday, arresting four people and seizing equipment allegedly intended for cyber fraud operations.
Police in Phu Tho province uncovered the transnational group and stopped preparations for what the Ministry of Public Security described as a major high-tech fraud hub in Vietnam.The four arrested included one Chinese national and three Vietnamese citizens, according to a ministry statement.
Investigators said the group had rented several resorts, farmstays and villas in Hanoi, Lao Cai and Phu Tho to accommodate dozens of people involved in the planned operation. Many of those recruited had previously worked at scam centres in Cambodia, police said.
Authorities seized dozens of computers, hundreds of mobile phones and internet equipment during the raid, saying the facility was close to becoming operational.The Ministry of Public Security said the intervention prevented the establishment of a large-scale transnational fraud operation and helped protect national security and public assets.
Online scam networks have expanded across Southeast Asia, with criminal groups frequently moving personnel, funds and technology across borders to operate fraudulent schemes.At a virtual press briefing on Wednesday, FBI Co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey described scam compounds as among the major global threats, saying their impact in Southeast Asia was increasing rapidly.
Bailey said such operations were managed by sophisticated international networks that exploit weak governance structures and emerging technologies to expand their reach.Amnesty International said in a report on Monday that dozens of suspected global scam compounds in Cambodia remained active despite a months-long crackdown by authorities.
