JAKARTA - India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) told the Council of States on December 11 that more than 6,700 Indian citizens have been rescued from scam compounds in Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos since operations began. 

The victims were lured through fake overseas job offers circulated largely on social media and then forced to work in cybercrime and fraudulent call center operations run by organized crime groups. MEA data show a near-even split among those rescued and repatriated: Laos accounts for about 34% (2,290 people), Cambodia 34% (2,265), and Myanmar 32% (2,165).

Between January 2022 and May 2024, roughly over 29,000 Indians traveled to Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, and Vietnam on visitor visas and never returned. More than half of these missing people are aged between 20 and 39. Over one third of the cases come from Punjab, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu, with Thailand alone accounting for 69 percent of missing persons.

"Government accords utmost priority to the safety, security and well-being of Indian nationals abroad. Government of India has raised this issue at political level with the host Government from time to time," the ministry says in a press release.

The government said cyber slavery rackets typically promise high-paying jobs in technology and service sectors. 

Once Indian recruits arrive in Southeast Asian countries, they are transported illegally to scam centers where passports are seized, movement is restricted, and workers are forced to run crypto frauds, romance scams, and phishing operations. Guards keep them locked up in heavily guarded buildings, often subjecting them to torture including electric shocks and beatings.

India has set up multiple channels for victims to seek help, including walk-ins at embassies, email communication, 24x7 multilingual emergency lines, WhatsApp helplines, and grievance platforms. The government has published a list of 3,505 unregistered recruitment agents on the e-Migrate portal based on complaints from victims. 

Officials estimate thousands more remain trapped in similar places across the region.