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Published 25 days ago • loading... • Updated 23 days ago
FBI Chief Hold Talks in Cambodia over Closer Security Cooperation to Combat Online Scam Crimes
The talks follow a regional summit as authorities seek to disrupt scam networks that the United Nations says caused losses of up to $114 billion in 2025.
FBI Director Kash Patel met Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet on Wednesday in Phnom Penh to discuss joint efforts against international online scam operations costing victims billions annually.
A United Nations report released Tuesday estimated scams caused up to $114 billion in losses across the Asia-Pacific region in 2025, with cybercrime flourishing in Cambodia and Myanmar where law enforcement is weak.
Thousands of foreign nationals recruited with false job offers are forced to run 'romance' and cryptocurrency scams in near-slavery conditions, while criminals have shifted tactics after raids on industrial-sized centers in Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia.
Washington committed to supporting 'criminal accountability for online scam operators, those who enable or protect them, and those complicit in related human trafficking crimes,' with the Embassy coordinating closely with Cambodia's accelerated crackdown.
Hun Manet announced on Telegram that Cambodia will host an international conference on combating cyber scams in September, extending momentum from this week's multilateral summit attended by nearly 20 countries and hundreds of law enforcement officials.