On April 1, Chhay Sinarith, standing vice chairman of the Commission for Combating Online Scams (CCOS), said law-enforcement agencies had handled more than 250 telecom and online scam cases over the preceding nine months. Of these, 80 cases involving about 750 suspects had been referred to judicial authorities, with people from China, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and Cambodia among those involved. He also reported the deportation of about 11,000 foreign nationals linked to scam investigations and inspections of more than 10,000 suspected locations involving about 80,000 foreign nationals from 78 countries.
Chhay Sinarith said scam operations were shifting from casinos and large buildings to smaller, dispersed groups concealed in residential areas and apartments to evade enforcement. He listed common schemes including romance scams, promises of high investment returns, fake prize notifications, theft of personal data and deceptive high-paying job offers.
To strengthen the legal framework, Cambodia had advanced an anti-online-scam bill, which the National Assembly passed on March 30, 2026, and which was to be submitted to the Senate shortly. Chhay Sinarith said that once implemented, the law would play an important role in curbing online scams, protecting public security and enhancing Cambodia’s reputation.
