Security News > 2024 > March > Filipino police free hundreds of slaves toiling in romance scam operation

Filipino police rescued 875 "Workers" - including 504 foreigners - in a raid late last week on a firm that posed as an online gaming company but in reality operated a forced labor camp that housed romance scam operators.

The "Gaming company" that ran the operation - which went by Zun Yuan Technology Incorporated - maintains a meager website that may not initially set off alarm bells and appears more targeted toward recruiting staff than clients.

The faux company details that it was established in 2023 as an upcoming "Prominent player/game provider in the online gaming industry" providing "a comprehensive range of services tailored to meet the unique needs of online casino operators worldwide."

Last October, authorities in the Philippines raided what claimed to be an internet gaming license hub, called Smart Web Technology Corporation, in Pasay City - one of the cities that make up Metro Manila.

Forced labor cyber crime syndicates have also been found in Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar.

Such measures to address cyber fraud operations have only pushed them from Cambodia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam into places like Lao PDR and parts of Myanmar.

News URL

https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2024/03/18/phillipines_cyberslavery_gang_busted/