Crypto, lies and torture: Inside the scam compounds of Southeast Asia

Tens of thousands of cyber slaves are held captive in Southeast Asia’s scam compounds, working around the clock to defraud love-seeking victims through dating apps and social media

Jan 18, 2025 - 05:00

Crypto, lies and torture: Inside the scam compounds of Southeast Asia

Daniel, a victim of a cyber scam, shows a photo of Adele, the fictional character with whom he was deceived.

When Daniel, a guy in his 40s in a town in southern Sweden, registered an account on the dating app Tinder, things went slowly at first. “I do think I look pretty good, but my self-confidence is low and I don’t really know how to write online,” he says. But then Adele showed up. Stylish, Asian features, in her 30s. She was in Sweden to visit her aunt. Daniel quickly took a liking and the conversation continued on WhatsApp. Adele sent pictures of herself and talked about her interest in cosmetics and cooking. They planned to meet up, maybe going on a trip to southern Europe together.

Seguir leyendo The fake cryptocurrency site where Daniel was scammed. Daniel, a victim of a scam orchestrated in Southeast Asia, in a park in Sweden on April 11, 2024. Raymond, a victim of human trafficking, is seen at one of the complexes controlled by Cambodian scam mafias in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on May 17, 2024. Andrew, who was also duped by a fake job offer and ended up as a cyberslave in a Cambodian scam factory, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on May 17, 2024. Scammers have Telegram groups for their employees, where they can download graphic material to use in their frauds. The facade of the building where Raymond was held captive for four months in Sihanoukville, Cambodia on May 25, 2024.