Cambodia to hold conference on combating online fraud — Channel NewsAsia
An international conference dedicated to combating large-scale online fraud schemes will be held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on September 23–24. Representatives of around 20 countries, including the United States and China, are expected to take part in the meeting. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet will host the talks aimed at strengthening joint efforts against fraud networks.
On the eve of the forum, Cambodian authorities showcased a closed fraud complex near the border with Vietnam. According to officials, around 20,000 people worked at the 120-hectare site last year. AFP journalists saw soundproof telephone booths, counterfeit US$100 banknotes, and a fake Singapore police station that served as a backdrop for video calls by fraudsters posing as law enforcement officers.
Data on the closure of centers
As Channel NewsAsia reports, citing AFP, Hai Makara, a representative of Cambodia’s anti-fraud commission, said that authorities had shut down 663 fraud facilities, including 86 large complexes, and frozen US$300 million in accounts linked to such operations.
At the same time, the official acknowledged that criminals are changing their methods and may operate from rented houses, rooms, hotels, or vehicles. Cambodian authorities also reported last month the detention of nearly 30,000 suspects, including 15 senior officials and law enforcement employees.
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Doubts over the campaign’s effectiveness
Cambodia launched a large-scale campaign against fraud centers in 2025 after pressure from China, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries. Analysts quoted by AFP believe that some networks may have moved to smaller and less conspicuous locations, while some centers received advance warnings about raids.
Transnational crime analyst Jacob Sims said that the Cambodian government had indeed taken measures, but that elite protection networks, buildings, and financial and corporate structures remained. Organized crime expert Lindsay Kennedy said that authorities had not properly investigated the closed facilities or interviewed people involved in their operations.
According to a US estimate, transnational criminal organizations in Southeast Asia defrauded Americans of at least US$18.2 billion through cybercrime schemes in 2025 alone. The United States also imposed new visa restrictions on 32 unnamed individuals, most of whom, according to the US side, are linked to the Prince Group conglomerate.
