In a cramped Jakarta boarding house, Yanti rereads her brother Wahyu’s last message: “Don’t tell Mama. I’m afraid she’ll get sick from stress. Just pray for me to stay strong.” Wahyu had left Indonesia for what he thought was a stable job at a Korean company. Instead, traffickers lured Wahyu to Myanmar under false promises, forcing him into an online scam operation.
Wahyu’s story is not unique. Thousands across Southeast Asia fell for fake job offers – customer service, tech support, cryptocurrency trading – only to land in guarded compounds, working brutal 17-hour shifts under threats of violence. Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos have emerged as primary scam centre hotspots, with the Philippines also playing a role in online fraud operations, while Thailand has emerged as a key transit hub for trafficked workers. They have become hotspots for cyber slavery, where trafficked workers run “pig butchering” scams, deceiving victims into fraudulent investments. This industry has been built on the region’s rapid digital expansion, compounded by weak financial oversight and the presence of cross-border criminal networks. In a very real sense, Southeast Asia’s internet boom has fueled human trafficking.
Southeast Asia’s digital economy is one of the fastest-growing in the world. Since 2016, the number of internet users in the region’s largest economies has more than doubled, driving e-commerce, digital payments, and online services. By 2030, the region’s digital economy is projected to reach $1 trillion in gross merchandise value, underscoring its vast economic potential.
But this digital revolution has also created the perfect conditions for criminal syndicates. The same infrastructure that enables e-commerce and mobile banking also facilitates cybercrime, money laundering, and human trafficking. Criminal networks exploit weak regulations, corruption, and porous borders, turning Southeast Asia into a hub for online scams, which according to the U.N., generate up to $37 billion in annual fraud losses.
Pig-butchering scams, which originated in China, now thrive in Southeast Asia. Syndicates recruit workers like Wahyu through social media and coerce them into fraud. Victims, mainly in the U.S. and Europe, invest in fake cryptocurrency, losing millions, while criminal networks launder profits through fintech channels.
In Myanmar alone, traffickers have forced at least 120,000 people into scam operations, while Cambodia holds another 100,000 victims in scam compounds, forcing them into cyber fraud under threats of violence. Chinese and Southeast Asian syndicates exploit victims worldwide through these operations.
Cyber slavery is not just a regional crisis; it is a global economic and security threat. Criminal syndicates traffic victims from around the world into scam operations, while defrauding people worldwide and destabilizing financial systems. In 2023 alone, Americans lost $12 billion to cyber scams, much of it linked to Southeast Asian syndicates. If left unchecked, this crisis could rival the fentanyl epidemic: both crises are fueled by transnational crime networks, billions in illicit profits, and government inaction.
Some claim strict regulations could stifle Southeast Asia’s booming digital economy, which has lifted millions out of poverty. But Singapore’s targeted fintech regulations prove that growth and accountability can coexist. For example, Singapore’s Payment Services Act, introduced in 2020, requires fintech firms to comply with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing measures.
Despite these regulations, Singapore remains a global fintech hub, attracting $4 billion in investments in 2022 alone. This demonstrates that robust oversight can curb illicit activity without hindering innovation. Other Southeast Asian nations must adopt similar oversight before traffickers further exploit digital finance.
The perception that cyber slavery is a domestic issue and that pressuring governments to act could strain diplomatic ties is misguided. Yet these scams operate internationally as cyber-slaves are being recruited globally. In some cases local authorities knowingly enable traffickers to run cyber slavery compounds, profiting from illicit revenue while victims suffer.
Critics argue that international law enforcement coordination faces significant challenges in dismantling scam compounds, making cross-border crackdowns ineffective. However, Interpol’s Operation Storm Makers showed that when law enforcement agencies collaborate, they can conduct real-time raids and arrest traffickers, even across jurisdictions. The operation led to multiple arrests and the disruption of cyber slavery hubs across Myanmar and Cambodia, proving that enforcement hurdles can be overcome. Governments must scale these efforts globally, strengthening intelligence-sharing and funding transnational task forces.
These criminal networks are expanding their reach. Beyond scam compounds, traffickers now exploit women through reproductive coercion, using the same deceptive tactics. A recent case exposed how traffickers lured dozens of Thai women to Georgia under false promises of surrogacy. Instead of carrying pregnancies, they were held captive, drugged, and subjected to forced egg extraction. Like cyber scam workers, their passports were confiscated, and they were threatened with legal consequences if they attempted to escape.
Without enforcement, these networks will keep expanding, and more people will be trapped. Addressing this crisis will require a coordinated effort from governments, tech companies, and international organizations. The fight against cyber slavery cannot be won through piecemeal efforts.
Governments must criminalize cyber slavery, if they haven’t already, and impose sanctions on nations that allow scam compounds to operate freely. Without targeted enforcement, these networks will keep growing. Law enforcement agencies must expand cross-border investigations and fast-track extradition agreements for traffickers.
Financial institutions must freeze suspicious transactions linked to known scam networks and increase due diligence requirements for fintech firms operating in high-risk regions. The banking industry cannot continue enabling money laundering tied to forced labor.
Tech companies must do more than issue vague guidelines; they must actively dismantle trafficking networks operating on their platforms. The Polaris Project has exposed how traffickers use Facebook and WhatsApp to post fake job listings, yet enforcement remains weak. Facebook knew about human trafficking on its platform in 2021 but failed to act.
These platforms must immediately shut down fraudulent job ads, expand AI-driven scam detection, and hold advertisers accountable for funding exploitation. Southeast Asian governments must fine tech companies for inaction – just as banks face consequences for money laundering. If tech giants refuse to regulate themselves, regulators must step in. Australia fined Telegram nearly $1 million for delaying its response to harmful content, showing that enforcement works. The U.S. has also passed laws requiring tech companies to report trafficking cases, proving that stronger oversight can push platforms to take responsibility.
International organizations must establish a global task force to track cyber slavery networks, enforce regulations, and pressure non-compliant governments. Governments that protect scam compounds must face trade restrictions and diplomatic isolation. Cyber slavery thrives on impunity and inaction should come at a cost.
Cyber slavery is not a hidden crime: it operates in plain sight. Without swift action, cyber slavery will become a permanent feature of the global digital economy.
For Wahyu and the hundreds of thousands of others trapped in cyber slavery, time is running out.