Irrawaddy-Jan 19

Scam syndicates in Karen State are openly recruiting again despite the junta’s creation of a multiministry “Central Committee for Supervising the Eradication of Online Fraud and Gambling,” residents told The Irrawaddy. Locals in Myawaddy and its scam hub of Shwe Kokko said that online scam centers had resumed hiring within weeks of the committee’s formation in December. Telegram channels began advertising jobs for drivers, security guards, cleaners, and cooks in Thitkate, northern Myawaddy Township. More recently, recruitment has expanded to computerrelated positions, signaling that scam centers are rebuilding their operations. “Scam operations never really stopped here,” said one Myawaddy resident. “Some sites paused briefly [after the regime’s crackdown], but by December they were back in business. Now new sites have opened in different locations and are operating.” A 20yearold man from Yangon said he worked at a scam center in Shwe Kokko before it was raided by the military regime in November. He has since been recruited to a new site in Thitkate, where he is tasked with targeting American nationals. Vacancies at scam centers are being advertised for new sites in Myawaddy, Thitkate, Falu, and Paya Thonzu, but also as far away as Yangon, Mandalay, and Taunggyi. Read more at: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/myanmar-scam-job-vacancies-surge-despite-junta-crackdown.html