The Big Trace | Heavy construction, military deployments, international airlifts and other take-aways from a recent visit to a global scamming hotspot.

WIRED | A investigation reveals that criminals who make billions from scam compounds in Myanmar—where tens of thousands of people are enslaved—are using Starlink to get online.

The Economist | Online scamming compares in size and scope to the illegal drug industry. In many ways it is worse. Everyone becomes a potential target simply by going about their lives. [paywall]

Bloomberg Investigates | Financial scams are exploding worldwide, and YouTube vigilantes are documenting their efforts to stop them.

Designated | Yaya Jata Fanusie interviews Operation Shamrock Founder Erin West about how pig butchering scams work and steps to take to avoid becoming a victim.

WIRED | Romance scams cost victims billions every year. As people grow increasingly isolated, scammers are using generative AI to scale their crimes.

The Economist | This award-winning podcast takes a deep dive into the multibillion-dollar scam industry. It’s just getting started, but set to become much more powerful.

The Big Trace | A growing community of selfless activists is taking responsibility to tackle Southeast Asia’s growing fraud problem.

The Big Trace | Reflections on an eye-opening journey along the Thai-Myanmar border where, at least for now, crime does pay.

WIRED | We talk a lot about scamming operations in Southeast Asia, but the criminal organizations that run them have expanded their operations worldwide.

Romance scammers lurk behind screens, weaving deceitful tales to lure victims. Read a firsthand account from a woman dedicated to exposing online fraudsters.

Global China Pulse | Money laundering for scam operations is big business in Cambodia, where workers help scammers move stolen funds to hide their source.

Explore one woman's hilarious and fascinating quest to expose the truth behind fraudulent Twitter profiles. Romance scammers have met their match.

Search Engine Podcast | An investigative reporter travels halfway around the world to find out who is sending him random wrong-number texts and why.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | John Oliver discusses a popular internet scam and why it’s easier to fall for it than you might think.

WIRED | A Chainalysis report finds that stablecoins, tied to the value of the US dollar, were used in the majority of crypto-based scam transactions and sanctions evasion in 2023.

Martina Dove | An in-depth explanation of not only why we fall for scams and how fraudsters use technology and other techniques to manipulate others, but also why fraud prevention advice is not always effective.