Interpol: Online fraud, love scams threaten Asian economies

PHNOM PENH: Interpol has flagged that online financial and romance fraud linked to organised syndicates is posing a growing threat to Asian economies, as Cambodia and Myanmar move to dismantle illicit scam operations.

Interpol's Director of Taskforce Coordination Directorate, Nicholas Court, said millions of dollars are lost daily to fraud worldwide, and Southeast Asia is no exception.

"We see a lot of different types of investment fraud, especially involving cryptocurrencies that is becoming more prevalent. Romance fraud has existed for decades but is becoming worse because of the use of social media and dating apps and people using the internet to find love and romance," Court told Bernama.

He spoke on the sidelines of the International Conference on Combating Online Scams, which was held in Phnom Penh from Sept 23 to 24.

The second edition of Interpol's Global Financial Fraud Threat Assessment, released in March, estimated that financial fraud resulted in worldwide losses of about US$442 billion (RM1.8 trillion) last year alone.

What initially started as regional scam operations has transformed into global-level crime networks, with centres discovered across multiple regions hiring thousands of young people to perpetrate online fraud.

Well-financed criminal organisations have been using several Southeast Asian countries, such as Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, to launch their nefarious activities against vulnerable citizens across the globe.

"Every day, losses could be hundreds of thousands or even millions of euros at any point, and Asian businesses are definitely victims.

"So, it's a really significant threat. A lot of countries see it as a national security threat even now because the amount of money that is leaving economies and countries and going into the pockets of criminals is vast.

"People are committing suicide somewhere in the world every day as a result of being the victim of fraud, and businesses are closing down all the time," he said.

Interpol's Operation Haechi, conducted from April to August last year, uncovered US$342 million (RM1.4 billion) in illicit funds and blocked 68,000 bank accounts across 40 countries.

The operation targeted cyber-enabled financial crimes, including voice phishing, romance scams, online sextortion, investment fraud, money laundering linked to illegal online gambling, business email compromise and e-commerce fraud.

Romance fraud involves scammers establishing fake relationships with victims through social media, dating apps or messaging platforms before fleecing them of money by fabricating emergencies or financial problems.