Operation Shamrock

07/23/2026

“It was so strange to me to see these people with very, very kind hearts in person being able to do such horribly mean things over the internet.” — Erin West, Operation Shamrock

scammers operate with a level of detachment. In person, they're kind. They answer questions. They help the very people who are exposing their through sketchy terrain. Online, it's another story.

Listen to the to hear what Erin and Paul Raffile learned on their visit to .

https://vist.ly/5c9i5

Thank you to Sumsub for supporting the journey!

07/22/2026

What are the favorite apps of the scammers targeting teens for sextortion?

Erin West and Paul Raffile flew to Nigeria to find the criminals targeting and extorting money from American teens. They succeeded. They met in person.

Then they asked them directly, “What platforms help you to commit the most crimes?” Top three: Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp — all three owned by Meta — followed by TikTok.

Get more of their exclusive story on the : https://vist.ly/5c4xa

Erin West and Paul Raffile flew to Nigeria to find the so-called Yahoo Boys who use sexual exploitation to scam teen boys. Join the Stolen podcast to hear what — and who — they found.

07/21/2026

Romance scams and pig butchering are no longer niche stories. Erin West joins Henri Arslanian on "The Future of Money" podcast to discuss how these industrial-scale operations target everyday people — and what we need to do to stop them.

07/21/2026

It's 3 a.m. Grandma gets a phone call. The person on the other end says, "Grandma, it's me, I'm in so much trouble, can you help me?"

Grandma didn't wake up that morning thinking, "I'm going to send $10,000 to a scammer." No. An unexpected communication heightened her emotional state and urgency to send money.

Erin West and AARP's Kathy Stokes talk more about scams, how to spot them, and different ways Operation Shamrock and AARP are working to fight them.

Learn more at https://vist.ly/5bw8v

07/20/2026

An article examining of the experience of Chinese and Vietnamese trafficking in compounds traces information from recruitment to their lives after captivity. Survivors are seen as offenders, even if scamming was forced through violence, coercion, and exploitation. Some of the data:
• 80+ of the victims forced into scamming were male.
• 71% of Vietnamese victims were between 18 and 39.
• 79% of Chinese victims were recruited through personal contacts, including friends and relatives.

Read more about "Imperfect Victims: Survivors of the Online Scam Industry" and Blue Dragon Children's Foundation.

Blue Dragon | A report examines the experience of Chinese and Vietnamese victims of trafficking into scam compounds. Survivors are seen as offenders, even if it was forced through violence, coercion, and exploitation.

07/19/2026

How do scammers use in digital arrest ?

Criminals impersonate authorities to falsely claim the right to arrest a target through digital means and put them under house arrest. Once they've isolated them, they work to defraud them out of as much money as they can — often the entire life savings of the victim.

Learn about how it works and who is at risk: https://vist.ly/5brcf

Abstract: In digital arrest fraud, criminals impersonate authorities to falsely claim the right to arrest a target through digital means and put them under house arrest.

07/19/2026

Ugandan authorities report that they have detained dozens of foreigners in a crackdown on illegal migration that the internal affairs ministry suggested was linked to and cyber operations.

A group of 169 people from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Ghana, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, and Malaysia was in a compound described as “a highly restricted, self-contained apartment complex equipped with its own restaurant and internal facilities designed to restrict movement.”

Ugandan authorities have detained dozens of foreigners in a crackdown on illegal migration that officials suggest was linked to human trafficking and cyberscam operations. (Associated Press)

07/18/2026

Scammers impersonating law enforcement told Ruchika she was a suspect in a financial crime. They put her under “house arrest” to isolate, intimidate, and manipulate her to give them all the money she had.

The most dominant in India today is also becoming common in Japan. And it’s rapidly growing in the United States.

Men impersonating law enforcement told Ruchika she was a suspect in a major crime. They put her under “house arrest” to isolate, intimidate, and manipulate her into giving them all the money she had. (Source: Bloomberg)

07/18/2026

With help from the United Nations, the Philippines has implemented a rights-based, victim-centered approach to regulations banning Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators, which were often used as cover for centers.

With support from the UN, the Philippines has improved enforcement of regulations banning offshore gaming operators (POGOs) often used as cover for scam compounds.

07/18/2026

A two-year investigation by Al Jazeera English 101 East uncovers the workings of Southeast Asia’s networks. The exclusive documentary exposes how the industry runs unchecked, trafficking more than 300,000 people from 60+ countries to steal trillions from victims all around the world.

https://vist.ly/5bphr

The story is disturbing enough, but the on-screen translations reveal the true cruelty of these criminals.