Loved and Scammed? This new global scam could trap you next!
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In an age where digital connections have become the norm, the search for love and companionship has increasingly moved online.
However, this shift has also given rise to a new and sinister form of exploitation known as the 'pig butchering' scam.
This cruel and elaborate scheme preys on the emotions of the unsuspecting.
The term 'pig butchering' might sound like a reference to an agricultural practice, but it's a metaphor for a vicious cycle of romance and cryptocurrency scams.
The scam works by 'fattening' up victims with affection and trust, only to 'slaughter' their bank accounts by convincing them to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms.
‘This is a romance scam times a million,’ a deputy prosecutor, Erin West, said.
‘This is a romance scam that's literally going to decimate the rest of the Western world.’
The scam centres are often located in lawless regions, such as the Myanmar side of the Thailand border, where many are trafficked and held captive under the guard of armed militia.
The conditions in these scam factories are brutal and inhumane. Trafficking victims are forced to work as scammers, facing severe punishment if they fail to meet their targets.
Reports from escapees detail harrowing experiences of being beaten, starved, and subjected to psychological torture.
‘They would beat us very badly,’ one victim said.
‘Fifteen days no food, no water. Fifteen days locked in the room.’
60 Minutes recently shed light on this dark underworld, travelling to the border area next to Mae Sot, Thailand, where they encountered these scam operations.
‘They were beaten very, very badly,’ she said.
‘They were held down, and then hammers and metal pipes were used to beat their bodies.’
‘They have a lot of swelling, they have a lot of bruising all over their bodies.’
‘Sometimes you're beaten immediately, and it's to scare you into complying. Other times, you're beaten because you're not meeting your scamming targets.’
The program featured the stories of two men who managed to escape, revealing the extent of their physical and emotional scars.
Aid workers, including Australian Mechelle Moore from Global Alms, are on the front lines, dedicating their efforts to rescue and support trafficked workers.
The scammers, often victims themselves, are equipped with scripts and psychological techniques to build relationships with targets, commonly reached through popular dating apps.
In a disturbing twist, these operations have even begun utilising artificial intelligence to create more convincing personas, allowing the scam to continue even when a video call is requested.
In Australia, cases have emerged of individuals losing substantial sums of money, like Sarah, a 45-year-old woman who lost $100,000 to a man she met on a dating app.
‘This is endemic,’ she said.
‘It's happening to so many people, and I don't think people are realising what's going on.’
‘You lose your confidence in yourself and your trust in people. You just want to hibernate … and it's a crime that's being committed against you. And one of the hardest things is, is that I'm also complicit in that myself.’
‘And they're getting to people through one of life's greatest things, which is love and romance.’
Law enforcement agencies, including those advised by Benedikt Hoffman from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, are working tirelessly to combat this issue.
‘We haven't seen anything like this in the world before,’ he said.
‘We're seeing that the scamming industry and the scam centres are at least in the same range of profitability as the drug trade.’
‘And we are quickly seeing it eclipsing the drug trade - you can target anyone at any time, and so the potential is much bigger.’
Have you encountered these scams, or do you know someone who has? Your story could help others avoid falling prey to these ruthless schemes. Feel free to share them in the comments below.
However, this shift has also given rise to a new and sinister form of exploitation known as the 'pig butchering' scam.
This cruel and elaborate scheme preys on the emotions of the unsuspecting.
The term 'pig butchering' might sound like a reference to an agricultural practice, but it's a metaphor for a vicious cycle of romance and cryptocurrency scams.
The scam works by 'fattening' up victims with affection and trust, only to 'slaughter' their bank accounts by convincing them to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms.
‘This is a romance scam times a million,’ a deputy prosecutor, Erin West, said.
Large amounts of money are stolen through romance and cryptocurrency schemes in a pig butchering scam where trust is first gained. Credit: Al Jazeera English / YouTube
‘This is a romance scam that's literally going to decimate the rest of the Western world.’
The scam centres are often located in lawless regions, such as the Myanmar side of the Thailand border, where many are trafficked and held captive under the guard of armed militia.
The conditions in these scam factories are brutal and inhumane. Trafficking victims are forced to work as scammers, facing severe punishment if they fail to meet their targets.
Reports from escapees detail harrowing experiences of being beaten, starved, and subjected to psychological torture.
‘They would beat us very badly,’ one victim said.
‘Fifteen days no food, no water. Fifteen days locked in the room.’
60 Minutes recently shed light on this dark underworld, travelling to the border area next to Mae Sot, Thailand, where they encountered these scam operations.
‘They were beaten very, very badly,’ she said.
‘They were held down, and then hammers and metal pipes were used to beat their bodies.’
‘They have a lot of swelling, they have a lot of bruising all over their bodies.’
‘Sometimes you're beaten immediately, and it's to scare you into complying. Other times, you're beaten because you're not meeting your scamming targets.’
The program featured the stories of two men who managed to escape, revealing the extent of their physical and emotional scars.
Aid workers, including Australian Mechelle Moore from Global Alms, are on the front lines, dedicating their efforts to rescue and support trafficked workers.
The scammers, often victims themselves, are equipped with scripts and psychological techniques to build relationships with targets, commonly reached through popular dating apps.
In a disturbing twist, these operations have even begun utilising artificial intelligence to create more convincing personas, allowing the scam to continue even when a video call is requested.
In Australia, cases have emerged of individuals losing substantial sums of money, like Sarah, a 45-year-old woman who lost $100,000 to a man she met on a dating app.
‘This is endemic,’ she said.
‘It's happening to so many people, and I don't think people are realising what's going on.’
‘You lose your confidence in yourself and your trust in people. You just want to hibernate … and it's a crime that's being committed against you. And one of the hardest things is, is that I'm also complicit in that myself.’
‘And they're getting to people through one of life's greatest things, which is love and romance.’
Law enforcement agencies, including those advised by Benedikt Hoffman from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, are working tirelessly to combat this issue.
‘We haven't seen anything like this in the world before,’ he said.
‘We're seeing that the scamming industry and the scam centres are at least in the same range of profitability as the drug trade.’
‘And we are quickly seeing it eclipsing the drug trade - you can target anyone at any time, and so the potential is much bigger.’
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