Authorities coordinated cross-border operations that reportedly rescued 520 Indians allegedly forced to work in online scam centres in Cambodia and targeted nearly 200 cybercrime hubs. Reporting links organised labour-trafficking rings to large-scale online investment and romance scams operating from Southeast Asian compounds.

A coordinated international crackdown has reportedly led to the rescue of 520 Indian nationals from alleged scam compounds in Cambodia, as authorities targeted close to 200 cybercrime hubs between 2023 and 2025. Investigators say victims were trafficked or coerced into working in online fraud operations that ran investment, employment and romance scams aimed at global victims. The raids reflect an ongoing nexus between labour trafficking and large-scale online criminal enterprises that exploit vulnerable migrants and foreign workers to staff scam call centres and money-laundering operations. Rescued individuals are being repatriated and debriefed while prosecutors pursue cases against ringleaders and operators who rented or ran the compounds. The operations involved multiple national law-enforcement agencies and represent part of a sustained effort to dismantle cross-border syndicates that move people, funds and digital infrastructure across jurisdictions. Authorities emphasise the need for victim-centred responses, stronger regional cooperation, and tighter scrutiny of recruitment channels used by traffickers to supply illicit online fraud factories.