Operation Shamrock Resource Library

Stay informed about scams, fraud, and the efforts to prevent and stop them.

Articles | Books | Education & Support | Podcasts | Research | Video

Articles

Featured
Teen Jumped Out a Window to Escape Cambodia’s Brutal Scam Farms
Teen Jumped Out a Window to Escape Cambodia’s Brutal Scam Farms

Reuters | Lured to Cambodia and forced to defraud strangers online, a Thai teenager said he barely survived after jumping from an eighth-floor window to escape a prison-like compound.

Cambodia: Government allows human rights abuses to flourish in scam compounds
Cambodia: Government allows human rights abuses to flourish in scam compounds

Amnesty International | The Cambodian government is ignoring a litany of human rights abuses being carried out by criminal gangs in more than 50 scam compounds across the country.

How Foreign Scammers Use U.S. Banks to Fleece Americans
How Foreign Scammers Use U.S. Banks to Fleece Americans

ProPublica | Asian crime syndicates’ online scams cheat victims around the world out of more than $44 billion a year. U.S. banks have been unable to stop them.

Body Camera Video Captures Scammer’s Change of Heart
Body Camera Video Captures Scammer’s Change of Heart

9NEWS Denver | An officer's body camera captured the confession of a woman who impersonated a federal agent and convinced a couple to buy $20,000 worth of gift cards.

Telegram Purged Chinese Crypto Scam Markets, Then Watched Them Rebuild
Telegram Purged Chinese Crypto Scam Markets, Then Watched Them Rebuild

Wired | Last month, Telegram banned black markets that sold tens of billions of dollars in crypto-scam-related services. Now, as those markets rebrand and bounce back, it’s done nothing to stop them.

Inside Vietnamese Phone Farms Where Fakery Is Made
Inside Vietnamese Phone Farms Where Fakery Is Made

FrankonFraud | Metal racks hold thousands of smartphones automated to imitate humans: liking posts, following accounts, and watching video. Seeding misinformation and scaling scams.

I was tricked, tortured, finally freed: Inside a Burmese scam farm
I was tricked, tortured, finally freed: Inside a Burmese scam farm

The Times | Trafficked by a Chinese crime gang, Mustapha Momoh was held in southeast Asia — one of 375,000 similar people forced to con westerners out of their life savings.

Escaping The Pig Butcher
Escaping The Pig Butcher

Forbes | What to watch out for to avoid being lured into scams. The key: Don’t respond or send money to random people who contact you online, no matter how good their story.

Books

Featured
I Want You (Your Money)
I Want You (Your Money)

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

Keanu Reeves Is Not in Love With You
Keanu Reeves Is Not in Love With You

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

Education & Support

Featured
CU Fight Fraud
CU Fight Fraud

CU Fight Fraud helps credit unions and community banks build fraud-savvy cultures that protect what matters most.

BBB Scam Tracker
BBB Scam Tracker

Better Business Bureau | Scam Tracker is a free tool anyone can use to report suspected scams. Your reports warn others so they can avoid similar cons.

Protect Your Investments
Protect Your Investments

Investor.gov | The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provides resources to identify potential scams, research investments, verify credentials of investment professionals, and more.

List of U.S. Secret Service Field Offices
List of U.S. Secret Service Field Offices

Report scams to your local field office. Cyber Fraud Task Forces work to prevent, detect, and mitigate cyber-enabled financial crimes, leading to arrests and convictions.

Types of Fraud
Types of Fraud

Investor.gov | Whether you are a first-time investor or have been investing for many years, here are some basic facts you should know about different types of fraud and scams.

Checklist: Investment Fraud Red Flags
Checklist: Investment Fraud Red Flags

Investor.gov | Can you spot the warning signs of investment fraud? Protect your investments and avoid scams using this list of red flags.

FTC: How To Avoid Imposter Scams
FTC: How To Avoid Imposter Scams

Federal Trade Commission | Imposter scams come in many varieties but work the same way: A scammer pretends to be someone, then tries to get you to send them money.

ReportFraud.ftc.gov
ReportFraud.ftc.gov

If you know it’s a scam or think it might be one, report it. The FTC investigates and brings cases against those who commit fraud, scams, and bad business practices.

Podcasts

Featured
Digital Forensics and Pig Butchering Schemes
Digital Forensics and Pig Butchering Schemes

BlockChain Trends | Learn about digital forensics and scam schemes from Operation Shamrock’s Aleks Ring on an episode of the BlockChain Trends podcast.

The Data Behind Online Scams
The Data Behind Online Scams

Data Basement Podcast | Explore pig-butchering scams with Operation Shamrock founder and cybercrime expert Erin West. Learn how scammers use AI for automation and digital currency to move their money.

Stolen: A Podcast with Erin West
Stolen: A Podcast with Erin West

Hear from law enforcement, cybersecurity experts, and victims of digital crime. Erin West investigates the global rise of digital crime — and the people caught in the crossfire.

Banking on Fraudology
Banking on Fraudology

In this weekly podcast, Hailey Windham educates the credit union community, organizations, and membership on scams and best practices to avoid them.

“Money Mules”
“Money Mules”

Scam Detectors | BBC technology journalist Jane Wakefield explores the growing threat of money muling, where criminals build entire "scam cities" to manipulate individuals into laundering stolen funds.

Designated: Uncovering “Pig Butchering” with Erin West
Designated: Uncovering “Pig Butchering” with Erin West

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

“Who’s behind these scammy text messages…?”
“Who’s behind these scammy text messages…?”

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

Research

Featured
Slavery, Human Trafficking and Torture in Cambodia Scam Compounds
Slavery, Human Trafficking and Torture in Cambodia Scam Compounds

Amnesty International | A detailed report documenting the alarming human rights crisis in Cambodia, identifying at least 53 scam compounds where rights abuses have taken place.

Threat Report Reveals Surge in Automated Cyberattacks
Threat Report Reveals Surge in Automated Cyberattacks

Fortinet | The 2025 Global Threat Landscape Report from FortiGuard Labs includes a comprehensive analysis across all tactics used in cyberattacks.

2024 Investment Scams Study
2024 Investment Scams Study

2025 | BBB Investment Scam Study | This study explores how crypto and romance fraud are used by investment scammers overseas to steals thousands from unsuspecting targets.

BBB Scam Studies
BBB Scam Studies

2025 | BBB | In-depth investigations outline how specific scams work, including how scammers use social engineering and manipulation emotions.

Video

Featured
WIS10 Interview: Operation Shamrock
WIS10 Interview: Operation Shamrock

WIS 10 TV | WIS interviews Operation Shamrock’s Hailey Windham to learn about scams, who the scammers target, and tips to keep yourself safe from online threats.

Body Camera Video Captures Scammer’s Change of Heart
Body Camera Video Captures Scammer’s Change of Heart

9NEWS Denver | An officer's body camera captured the confession of a woman who impersonated a federal agent and convinced a couple to buy $20,000 worth of gift cards.

Bitcoin ATM Scam Hits Arizona Hard
Bitcoin ATM Scam Hits Arizona Hard

May 2025 | Investigate TV | Arizona authorities are warning residents about a new wave of scams using Bitcoin ATMs that have already cost victims millions of dollars.

Let’s Talk About Relationship Scams
Let’s Talk About Relationship Scams

2025 | Investor.gov | Have you received a message from someone you don’t know? An unsolicited job offer, a wrong number, or an unknown DM. Be wary: It could be a scammer.

Pig Butchering Scams: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Pig Butchering Scams: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

February 2024 | 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.