China and Thailand Work Together To Stop Southeast Asia’s Illegal Scam Call Centers

China and Thailand are working together to tackle human trafficking and phone scams by battling illicit call centers that operate along their borders.

China and Thailand have pledged to work together to address the escalating issue of illegal call centers operating along Thailand’s border with Cambodia and Myanmar. These facilities, which are frequently manned by trafficked individuals, specialize in internet and phone frauds that prey on victims worldwide.

Southeast Asia has emerged as a key hotspot for telecom fraud, especially the border areas between Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia. The United Nations has drawn attention to the concerning rise in scam operations since the start of the COVID-19 epidemic, with hundreds of thousands of people being trafficked into these facilities. 

Many of these laborers endure extreme abuse and exploitation.

Thai police responded to this situation by announcing Friday that they would set up a coordination center at the national police headquarters in Bangkok to look into and break up scam networks. 

Chinese officials also intend to establish a second center in Mae Sot, a town close to Myawaddy, Myanmar, which is known for being a center for scam activities.

“This center (in Bangkok) will collaborate (with China) to investigate and combat call center gangs that involve many Chinese and Thai nationals and are based in Myawaddy, Myanmar, and along the Cambodian border,” the Thai police said. It is anticipated that the facility will open in February 2025.

Following allegations of the cruel treatment of trafficking labor, there is increasing public pressure in Thailand to address these scam complexes. China has also voiced growing concerns, particularly in the wake of the well-publicized kidnapping and subsequent release of Chinese actor Wang Xing, who was imprisoned at a fraud center in Myanmar.

Agreements to eradicate telecom fraud networks operating throughout the area have resulted from recent talks between Thai and Chinese security authorities in Bangkok and a conference in Kunming, China. Thai military officials met with Myanmar’s military junta this week to talk about working together to fight internet fraud and human trafficking.

Between October 2023 and January 2025, the junta returned more than 55,000 foreigners, including more than 53,000 Chinese people, from fraud centers, according to the country’s state-run publication, Global New Light of Myanmar. Thai Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai has denied reports that neighboring nations back military activities, stating that China and Myanmar must also be crucial in resolving the problem.

Although there are still obstacles in completely dismantling the intricate networks that operate in the region, Thailand and China’s joint actions indicate a reinforced regional strategy to combating illicit call centers and human trafficking.