A scourge of these tech-driven times, scam call centers have proliferated, like a viral infection that threatens not only to destroy a body, but intends to infect an entire society. Scam call centers do a myriad of illicit activities, usually implemented by people who were illegally recruited or trafficked from economically challenged communities.
With the end goal of embezzling money from hapless victims, all illegal methods are used, most of which involve a call center agent making a series of calls to phish personal details or account numbers. All tools are used, even fake Facebook profiles, dating apps, imposter websites copying legit company websites, or AI-generated texts and voices.
Again, these scam call centers exist because there are people that they could fool, and it seems that global authorities are having a challenging time to shut down their operations. In fact, the Wall Street Journal has written that “Americans lost more than US$ 10 billion to online scammers in 2022, the highest level since the FBI began tracking losses in 2000.” The FBI even said that it “recorded more than 800,000 complaints in 2022, or more than 2,000 complaints a day.” The numbers are staggering and this does not include other nationalities who are victims, too.
Online articles have revealed that these scam call centers are usually located in South Asian countries, but recent investigations have revealed that these have been sprouting in Southeast Asia, particularly in Cambodia and Myanmar. The Philippines, however, is not far behind.
This was revealed by a statement from Senator Risa Hontiveros, when she raised the alarm on the notorious cryptocurrency scamming industry, saying that many of its operations are “also conducted right here in the Philippines.”
"Sadly, right under our very noses, the Philippines is hosting its very own scam hubs. Large condominium buildings are being repurposed as living and working facilities for trafficked human beings forced to perform scams on hapless victims," Hontiveros said.
The senator warned that the scam call centers are now “employing foreigners trafficked into the country,” noting that the trafficked victims are from Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia, etc.
In Hontiveros’ statement, she was doubly alarmed with the so-called “pig butchering scam,” which is now a thriving fraud scheme. A cursory research on this scam, also known as “romance scam” is a “long-term fraud where scam call center agents search dating and social media sites for victims. The scammers typically create a fake profile and reach out to potential victims through dating apps. The goal is to become the victim’s ‘lover’ or ‘friend.’ Once trust is established, then it would be easy for the scammer to access personal details, bank accounts, or credit card numbers.“
"It is frightening that these criminal activities have been made easy by social media platforms. But it is more frightening to hear how effortless foreigners can get into the country, with the aid of unscrupulous immigration officials. This is a serious national security concern that we must urgently address. We cannot allow these syndicates to turn our country into outlaw territory," Hontiveros said.
All efforts must be done to cut the lines of these scam call centers. A community must be vigilant, especially since these call centers operate in condos or villages. There should also be support from the social media platforms as illegal ads still proliferate the online world. It would take a high-tech solution to combat this fraud which uses online tools. Our authorities have to keep up with the times, or else, the scammers will always be one step ahead.
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