Cambodia’s prime minister has declared that the country will not serve as a refuge for online scam syndicates, opening an international anti‑fraud summit in Phnom Penh designed to highlight his government’s efforts against cybercrime.

“Cambodia will never be a safe haven for online scams,” Hun Manet told delegates from more than a dozen nations, including the United States and China. He pledged that criminal networks would not be allowed to undermine national progress or the livelihoods of Cambodia’s 17 million citizens, and called for stronger global cooperation, including real‑time intelligence sharing.

Authorities say they have dismantled sprawling scam compounds, some employing up to 20,000 workers, and deported thousands of foreign nationals. Police displayed seized items such as fake FBI and Chinese police badges used in impersonation schemes. The United States estimates Americans lost more than $10 billion to scams in the region in 2024 alone.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime welcomed the summit as a sign of growing openness but stressed that more must be done, urging coherent regulations and investment in digital evidence collection. Critics, however, argue that politically connected figures who allegedly shielded the networks remain untouched, while criminal groups have adapted by breaking into smaller units or shifting operations abroad.

For Cambodia, the summit is both a showcase and a test: whether its crackdown can convince sceptics that the country is serious about dismantling one of Southeast Asia’s most lucrative criminal industries.

-2026-09-25

Anyone that knows the history of those running the country knows a Summit like this is straight from their old play book. It used to be the International Aid Summits where Western governments and NGO's would pledge eye watering sums annually in return for what proved to be hollow promises from the same people year after year. Calling for global cooperation is just deflection in the extreme when they have knowingly facilitated and benefited from the industry for years, until the pressure globally became too big for them to ignore. They've severely damaged the reputation of their country and it's the thousands of ordinary Cambodians in the tourist industry that are currently paying the price.

Hopefully the outside world won't be duped this time.

Oh the irony.