Digital arrest scam: How cybercriminals in Cambodia are defrauding Indians

An investigation by India Today has found that human traffickers are luring Indian citizens to Cambodia with the promise of jobs, and they are then coerced to undertake online financial scams and cyber crimes. With an increasing number of digital arrest frauds in India, the Home Ministry’s cyber wing has identified southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand as the hotbeds for these scams.
The Indian embassy in Cambodia has also issued an advisory for jobseekers in the country. The embassy has also urged Indian nationals not to seek employment on a ‘tourist visa’, which is illegal in Cambodia.
“It has come to attention that Indian nationals, lured by fake promises of lucrative job opportunities in Cambodia, are falling into the trap of human traffickers. These Indian nationals are coerced to undertake online financial scams and other illegal activities,” the advisory said.

The IPDRs (Internet Protocol Detail Record) of the digital arrest fraudsters have revealed their location to be Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam, India Today has found. The money collected from such scams is then withdrawn from ATMs in Dubai and Vietnam.
Cybercriminals sitting in Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam order Indian SIM cards for their agents. Investigation has revealed that about 45,000 SIM cards were sent to Cambodia and Myanmar. The SIM cards were later deactivated by Indian agencies.
In March, the Uttarakhand Special Task Force seized around 3,000 M2M SIM cards, which are engineered specifically for machine-to-machine communication.

Southeast Asian countries have emerged as the hotbeds for these scams

Sources in the Home Ministry’s cyber wing said scammers were siphoning off approximately Rs 6 crore every day through digital arrest. In the first 10 months of this year alone, scammers have siphoned off Rs 2,140 crore.
The Home Ministry has found that the fraudsters mostly operate from call centres situated in Chinese casinos in Cambodia. Till October, the cyber wing has reported a staggering 92,334 cases related to digital arrest frauds.