Isabella Cerio

Professor Murrett and Professor Patel

PAI 338 Sp25

4/6/25

Cybercrimes and Human Trafficking in Southeast Asia

National Intelligence Estimate

Following the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, gambling centers were converted into cybercrime centers and individuals are being trafficked into these centers under false pretenses consequently being held against their will. Further, these centers have been able to collect multiple billions of dollars each year from United States citizens. The growth of AI has also allowed these crimes to become harder to track and identify.

• In 2023, over 100,000 people trafficked into crime centers in Cambodia

• UN Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates 18 to 37 billion taken by crime centers in Southeast Asia (SEA), 3.5 billion of the total was taken from U.S. citizens

• AI software has encouraged growth in translation, generation, and anonymity when operating the crime

• Crime centers have diverse locations across countries in SEA and are often controlled by a group based outside of the origin country of the center

• Development of a cyber crime market has drastically altered the availability of cyber crimes to global criminals

Origins and Accelerants

Cybercrime has existed since the creation of the internet and continues to grow with it. Many are aware of the classic scams like fake prizes, foreign princes, and information mining. How Chinese gang’s became involved with human trafficking and cybercrimes begins with the outbreak of Covid-19. As the pandemic shut down gambling dens across Southeast Asian countries, these groups had a void in income that needed to be filled. Cybercrime was an attractive option, allowing groups to access people all over the world even though there was a global lockdown. However, they did not have enough hands to run all of these scams as it was clear that the scale of these operations became quite large. The 2021 military coup in Myanmar provided further disorder within the country allowing Chinese criminal groups to further operations in the area. These conditions have allowed a sprawling criminal network across SEA that exploits people through the internet and through human trafficking. The dual ended threat of these cyber crimes affects the United States in addition to the global community. 

Human Trafficking Crisis

To provide the amount of people needed to run the scams in all of the converted centers, groups turned to forms of human trafficking to continue to grow this lucrative form of online crime. Many of these people are recruited under the pretenses of another job, after arriving they are transported and forced to work in these centers. These job offers seem like they have been sent by the victim’s friends or family through accounts on WhatsApp and Facebook. Individuals, often young adults or teenagers, in search of work can be led to believe they have a great opportunity. The USIP has reported 17 crime zones across the Myanmar-Thailand border following the Moei River. Throughout Cambodia and Myanmar an approximate 220,000 people have been trafficked into cyber crime centers. 

Individuals at risk of being trafficked are often drawn in by false job offers providing transport to the location before being taken to one of the centers and told instructions on longcon scams. The trafficking victims are of many nationalities including China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Singapore, and even Uganda. The multiregional trafficking effort should cause concern for many countries since trafficking victims often willingly travel to another country. A man from Uganda reported to The New York Times that once he had entered Thailand he was given a three month visa even though he was supposed to work for six months; in less than 24 hours after arrival, he was transported across the Moei river to Myanmar. Once a victim is out of the country, there may be difficulties in locating them and even determining who is a victim. The discrepancies in documentation and quick transport poses a larger issue to organizations attempting to locate or retrieve trafficked persons. As in the case most recently discussed, the victim may further be held liable for overstaying their visa if they seek assistance. 

Technological Development

Emergence of accessible AI software of different types has aided in the development and sophistication of cyber crimes. These AI assisted scams are more likely to work, because they are designed to exploit one’s emotions. Language Learning Model software (LLMs) assist in translation and construction of messages sent by the crime centers, allowing communications to even mimic typical online discussion or a specific person. Other generating software allows personalization of cyber crime beyond the expected phishing attacks and scam messages, to generate deep fake images of the target known as ransomware. Generated images can be used for such blackmail, but may also be utilised in identity theft or crypto mining. Although the expansion of AI capabilities are a threat, the ease of use is one of the most concerning aspects given that it lowers barriers to entry and identifying features. FraudGPT is an AI bot that utilizes LLMs to write various forms of communication and bypass digital password systems. 

Cryptocurrency is also used to exploit victims, emphasizing the possible benefits of investment without disclosing the terms and conditions of the payment firm. This capitalizes on the ‘unknown’ aspects of cryptocurrency to an individual, likening this method of investment to the romanticized version of the early stock market. Fake or misleading cryptocurrency apps allow victims to deposit money, but when they try to cash out or remove stock it is not possible. Taking advantage of the relative newness of cryptocurrency, these online funds and systems have not been globally regulated, leaving gaps through which money can be laundered or collected with minimal oversight.  

Criminal Market

In coordination with the technological developments associated with cyber crimes, Chinese criminal groups are diversifying their income by investing in the development of a cyber market. This allows others to contract cyber crimes for a monetary value, starting at US$ 50.00 depending on the time and difficulty of the tasks. This market allows individuals who may not be able to execute sophisticated cyber crimes to outsource these activities, again lowering the barrier to entry for these crimes. The market aspect that has developed in cyber crime will also encourage specialisation and competition between actors. This development is particularly concerning because of how fast the cyber crime market has grown in recent years. The development of technology used to facilitate and mask cyber crime operations has already outpaced U.S. government abilities to detect and eliminate such threats. 

Site Traffic and Methods of Collection

Although it is clear that the criminal groups have been diversifying their income profile through the online market and messaging/social media apps, the gambling business was still a worthwhile investment if they intertwined it with new technological developments. Front companies for online gambling platforms run by Chinese criminal groups obtained sponsorship of European football clubs to advertise their site in stadiums and on jerseys, thus generating traffic from additional global regions. The gambling sites take advantage of the usual odds when gambling and use info stealing malware to make a larger profit off of a singular website user. These platforms may have unregulated virtual asset service providers allowing integration with the common market. The global spread of these cybercrimes is evident through the execution in the United States and European countries. The main targets of these scams seem to be Western countries drawing increased attention to the security of personal information and private networks which are often used on the same device. 

Effects and Impacts

Although the targets of the crimes tend to be based in Europe or the U.S., the layered element of human trafficking makes the trafficked scammers victims as well. This expands the effects of the cyber crimes proliferating SEA to the global community at large and individual countries. The effects of these cyber crimes have been monitored and shared by various US governmental agencies and International organizations. However, it is difficult to analyze the full scale of these criminal actions due to the intricate and often untraceable nature. The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) estimates that US citizens lost 3.5 billion to such scams. Individuals who are victims of sextortion fraud are usually victims of info stealing malware as well. This is utilized to hold images or videos for ransom until a sum is paid. These scams are considered romance baiting since they intend to establish connection and emotion, however, these scams have also been named ‘Pig butchering’. Such extortion likely causes the victims a monetary and emotional toll through the experience. 

The methods used to collect and extort victims online may also contain malware that exposes secure networks to possible bad actors that have been able to bypass authentication locks. This may reveal information that can be used against U.S. businesses and government sectors. Putting national security and competition as a priority is vital when confronting technological actors. 

Regional Intervention in Southeast Asia

The operation of Chinese criminal groups in Southeast Asia is not a new development, before the onset of Covid-19, many gambling dens in the region had connections or were run by a criminal group. This has been an issue that states have been battling both within and outside their borders. There are multiple issues which the Intelligence Community has discovered when attempting to curb these operations. First, the trans-border nature of this issue complicates the organization and accessibility of information since there is no body which has supreme authority. Further, it is likely that Chinese criminal groups have connections within the governments of multiple SEA countries due to continued lack of serious action against these groups. 

In 2024, a Philippine mayor, Alice Guo was removed from her post following allegations of connection to illegal gambling dens. Following the publicization of the allegations, a raid was performed on a gambling facility that was located on land under her partial ownership. The raid discovered hundreds of trafficked workers being held within the facility. Unconfirmed accusations also place Guo with money laundering and Chinese criminal groups. This discovery exemplifies how entwined business and government officials can be with the operations of criminal groups even if it is at the detriment of their population. Bribery and corrupt officials also play into this issue, officials who benefit directly from the profit of the crime centers are unlikely to continue to push for the reduction and eventual elimination of mass criminal operations. 

International Intervention

Since many of the human trafficking operations have ties to Chinese criminal groups, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has become involved in the investigation especially when Chinese nationals are involved. The assistance of a larger power would typically be considered reinforcement in such situations, however some worry that the PRC is using this crisis as an excuse to further Chinese police presence in SEA. Following an investigation into Chinese nationals running cyber scams in Fiji, the Chinese police were reported to have not followed procedure in documentation or hearings. In more recent years, China has also focused on eliminating the threat on their border with Myanmar, one of the hubs of Chinese criminal activity. In November of 2023, Myanmar sent thousands of Chinese cyber crime suspects to China, however the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) estimates that at least 120,000 people are in crime centers across Myanmar. 

The severity of the issue has been recognized by multiple international organizations including the UNODC, ASEAN, and INTERPOL. In late 2024, the UN passed the Convention against Cybercrime after years of negotiations. This convention will enable future coordination and effectiveness of the action taken by the global community in response to cyber crimes. A 24/7 network is provided to assist in all aspects of proceedings from investigation to extradition. The vulnerability of children on the internet is also addressed with such exploitation of a minor being taken seriously to protect children. The convention urges states to provide victims with aid according to domestic laws and to invest heavily in development of prevention and reintegration programs. Through this convention the UN hopes to provide safeguards and encourage countries to enforce online laws to cultivate a safer online environment taking into account vulnerable populations. 

Domestic Intervention in the United States

Steps have been taken within the US to counter cyber crime from within their own borders, this is done by holding platforms accountable for scam posts and criminal activity. In 2024, the founder and CEO of Telegram Pavel Durov was indicted on charges for allowing illegal and criminal activity to be facilitated on the platform and not cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation. Controlling the platforms within US borders is the beginning of a safer online community. 

Future Actions

When facing these threats to national security and international governance, it is necessary for the government to focus on actions that can further protect US citizens and interests while developing further technology to reduce the threat and encouraging international cooperation to enforce protections for victims and reduce the operations in SEA. Actions to be taken possibly include:

• Public Campaign to bring awareness to scams that may affect US citizens including gambling sites and romantic exploitation

• Provide stricter enforcement of cyber law and continue to hold platforms accountable for hosting criminal organizations and effort; for international platforms a ban may need to be instituted until the site is safe again

• Participate in future international collaboration such as the Convention against Cybercrime (December 2024)

• Encourage SEA countries to further crackdown on criminal networks in the state whether through the domestic law enforcement or with the help of the PRC

• Facilitate cyber education for countries that are at risk of having their citizens trafficked or public notices to prevent citizens from falling for the trafficking scams. 

• Invest in development of anti-cybercrime software and AI detection

The difficulty with this issue and with many issues that plague the international community is that the means of cyber crime operation has grown faster than the government’s operation with little sign of stopping. The most important factor that will aid the US in the long term is continued encouragement of technological awareness and education in the US. Hopefully, this will enable citizens to protect themselves on the internet while the US and the international community develop the means to prevent cyber crime.

Citations

Abi Akar, Murielle, and Adrien Ogee. “Behind the Screen: The Harrowing Reality of Trafficked

Cybercriminals in Southeast Asia.” CyberPeace Institute, Cyber Peace Institute, 6 Mar. 2024, cyberpeaceinstitute.org/news/trafficked-cybercriminals-in-southeast-asia/.

Bernard, Tara Siegel. “Lured by a Promising Job, He Was Forced to Scam People.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 10 Sept. 2024, www.nytimes.com/2024/09/10/business/scammers-trafficking-cybercrime.html.

“Billion-Dollar Cyberfraud Industry Expands in Southeast Asia as Criminals Adopt New

Technologies.” United Nations : UNODC Regional Office for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 7 Oct. 2024, www.unodc.org/roseap/en/2024/10/cyberfraud-industry-expands-southeast-asia/story.html.

Dickson, Julia, and Lauren Burke Preputnik. “Cyber Scamming Goes Global: Unveiling

Southeast Asia’s High-Tech Fraud Factories.” CSIS, Center for Strategic and International Studies, 24 Dec. 2024, www.csis.org/analysis/cyber-scamming-goes-global-unveiling-Southeast-asias-high-tech-fraud-factories.

Lin, Dr Leo S.F., et al. “Business As Usual? Chinese Organised Crime in Southeast Asia.” Australian Outlook, Australian Institute of International Affairs, 17 Jan. 2025, www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/business-as-usual-chinese-organised-crime-in-southeast-asia/.

Ngui, Yantoultra. “Southeast Asia Human Trafficking Now a Global Crisis, Interpol Says |

Reuters.” Reuters, 28 Mar. 2024, www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/southeast-asia-

human-trafficking-now-global-crisis-interpol-says-2024-03-27/.

UN News. “Making the Digital and Physical World Safer: Why the Convention against Cybercrime Matters | UN News.” United Nations, United Nations, 24 Dec. 2024, news.un.org/en/story/2024/12/1158526.