The UK has announced sanctions against a global network worth billions of pounds of UKG that has been linked to the operation of fraudulent centers, which provide torture and exploitation of workers for sale.
Fraudulent centers located in Southeast Asia are defrauding victims around the world on a large scale. In East Asia and Southeast Asia alone, online fraud losses in 2023 are estimated at $37 billion, not to mention greater global losses originating from the region.
The criminal groups behind these networks have bought and sold tens of thousands of foreigners from more than 50 countries to work in fraud centers across Southeast Asia.
Victims detained in abandoned complexes or casinos are forced to commit online fraud under the threat of beatings, electric torture, or being sold elsewhere. The International Humanitarian Organization has described it as an alarming human rights crisis.
The UK has therefore coordinated with the US to announce sanctions to deal with this growing transnational threat, protect human rights and prevent illegal cash flows into the UK.
These measures will also help expose and prevent the activities of the criminal network, protecting UK citizens and Southeast Asian people from the serious impacts of fraud cases.
This is the latest in a series of strong actions by the UK to combat fraud crimes in the region, including sanctions at the end of 2023 against individuals and organizations involved in the trafficking of people for "fraudulent centers".
Fraudulent centers have stolen money that people are struggling to find, and detained vulnerable victims in their bedside network, said Stephen Doughty.
Fraudulent centers exist in many Southeast Asian countries. This is a transnational threat that requires coordinated actions to stop illegal financial flows, threaten human rights, economic growth and national security.
"We have taken strong action to protect UK citizens and the transparency of the national financial system. We are fully aware of the damage that illegal finance is causing to the region and are committed to working closely with Southeast Asian countries to support them in their efforts to eradicate the fraudulent centers and networks behind them," Deputy Minister Doughty emphasized.
