Meta, DOJ Take Down Criminal Scam Networks Across Southeast Asia

Cambodia alone hosts more than 50 scam centers, with revenues exceeding $12.5 billion annually, roughly half the country’s formal GDP.

The Poipet International border checkpoint between Cambodia and Thailand in Poipet, Banteay Meanchey province on Dec. 12, 2025. Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP via Getty Images

American and international law enforcement agencies teamed up with Meta to take down major criminal scam networks operating out of Southeast Asia, with the company disabling more than 150,000 related accounts, Meta said in a March 11 statement.

“Online scams have become significantly more sophisticated and industrialized in recent years, with criminal networks often based in Southeast Asia in countries like Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos running what amount to full-scale business operations,” Meta said.