Southeast Asia’s scam industry has hardened into a single, interconnected criminal economy, with losses now comparable to the economic output of some countries, according to a report released Tuesday by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
The agency said the region’s underworld has undergone a “fundamental” restructuring. Groups that once stayed tied to one territory and one specialty have fused into transnational networks, selling services such as money laundering, fraud, human trafficking, and data harvesting to one another through shared infrastructure.
UNODC compares the structure to corporate franchising
Delphine Schantz, UNODC Regional Representative for South-East Asia and the Pacific, said in a statement that the model resembles “corporate franchising.” She pointed to specialized departments for money laundering, human trafficking, and data harvesting that plug into the same service-based network.
UNODC said technology is rapidly reshaping the operating model of transnational organized crime, and that the shift is especially visible in South-East Asia. Its latest threat assessment links that change to cyber scams, synthetic drug production, and trafficking in persons.
Estimated 2025 scam losses reached $88.3 billion to $114.1 billion
Combined losses from scam offenses across East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand totaled an estimated $88.3 billion to $114.1 billion in 2025 alone, the report said. UNODC added that the figure outstrips the GDP of several countries in the region.
A large share of that money moves through crypto. The report said scam compounds run investment and romance fraud operations, often referred to as pig butchering, and launder the proceeds on-chain. UNODC warned that police in the region still lack the training needed to follow the money in what it called “the new crypto context.” Schantz added that seizing criminal proceeds has become essential because “disruption alone does not work.”
People from at least 80 countries were identified in scam compounds
Rather than relying mainly on physical contraband smuggling, criminal groups are increasingly selling cyber-enabled fraud, criminal infrastructure, and platform-based financial settlements that leave little trace and are difficult to attribute, the report said.
Forced labor remains central to the system. UNODC said people from at least 80 countries have been identified inside scam compounds. The report also said scam networks are trying to widen their recruitment base, including through advertisements aimed at people with European and North American language skills.
Generative AI, deepfakes, malvertising, and Starlink were all flagged
The report highlighted generative AI, deepfakes, and near-automated fraud as emerging risks. It also pointed to malvertising, which it described as the hijacking of legitimate ad networks to spread malware, saying such activity rose 42% year-on-year in 2025.
UNODC said satellite internet services, including Elon Musk’s Starlink, have “decoupled” criminal operations from local telecommunications infrastructure, allowing them to operate in remote locations.
Sulu and Celebes Seas identified as a growing smuggling route
Beyond scam operations, the report identified other fast-growing criminal markets. It named the Sulu and Celebes Seas, the maritime triangle between Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, as a rising smuggling corridor.
It also warned that criminals are gamifying online gambling to attract younger users.
Law enforcement response is intensifying
Monica Juma, Executive Director of UNODC, said the networks are “flexible, persistent and adaptable,” able to move across borders and resume operations after law-enforcement crackdowns. She said international cooperation is essential if authorities want to dismantle them.
Authorities in other jurisdictions are also stepping up enforcement. U.S. prosecutors last week seized more than $25 million in crypto tied to investment and romance scams routed through the region, and Interpol has labeled the compound networks a global threat.
The human cost is also drawing more attention. Amnesty International has documented a humanitarian crisis as workers flee compounds in Cambodia. The report also pointed to the Cambodia case involving alleged Prince Group boss Chen Zhi, who was arrested pending extradition to China, in a matter that included one of the largest Bitcoin seizures ever recorded.