Investigating the Global Scam Crisis with Erin West
Sumsub | Erin West travels to document the scam industry’s criminal infrastructure. She reveals how organizations recruit victims, launder money, evade authorities, and continue expanding.
Scammed: A PBS Frontline Documentary
PBS | Scammed, a new Frontline documentary examines the global criminal industry built on scams and fraud, the people and technology that enable it, and the efforts to shut it down.
The Fraud Economy Has a Supply Chain; Erin West Is Going After It
PYMNTS | Scammers will take as much as they can. As Erin West tells CEO Karen Webster, “Whether it’s $4.5 million or $450,000 or $45,000, the scammer is going to take every penny that you have.”
Protect Yourself from Rental Scams
NBC Bay Area | Rental scams aren’t new, but tech helps criminals take the ruse to new levels. Erin West talks about a recent case in San Francisco.
They Don’t Shut Down, They Move: Inside Cambodia’s Scam Cities
Sumsub | Erin West traveled to Cambodia to investigate the scam industry and separate fact from fiction, image from reality. The news about crackdowns was in the headlines. But what she found didn’t match.
House Select Committee on China: May 19, 2026 Hearing Video Replay
Operation Shamrock’s Erin West testified about the scam industry before The House Select Committee on China on May 19, 2026.
Inside the Chinese Deepfake Apps Powering Global Scams
404 Media | Journalist Joe Cox obtained a copy of the “Haotian AI,” deepfake software that scammers use to turn their face into anyone else’s face in real time.
Is Cambodia’s Scam Crackdown Working? Erin West Went to Find Out
Sumsub | Operation Shamrock investigates the heart of the scam industry. Erin explores compounds, finds new ones, and meets a trafficking victim forced to scam under threat of violence.
From Trafficking Victim to Cybercrime Whistleblower
Huntress | Hear a trafficking survivor’s firsthand story of life in a scam compound where he was forced to scam people. Learn how scams work and what you can do to stay safe.
I Was Trapped in Chinese Mafia Crypto Slavery
WIRED | It began with a message in a journalist’s inbox. A computer engineer from India was in a scam compound, forced to work 15-hour shifts running scams.
Scammers Use Fraud Alert Text to Steal Woman’s Life Savings
KHOU-11 | It looked like a typical text alert from her bank warning her of suspicious charges on her account. She replied “no,” and the scammers got to work.
34 Arrests in Action against ‘Black Axe’ Criminal Network
Europol | The Spanish National Police, working with the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office, disrupted operations of the “Black Axe” international criminal organization.
Trafficking victims scam under threat of violence
CTV News | An investigation looks into why the people making scam calls targeting Canadians seem to be so willing to scam people out of their life savings.
‘I was heartbroken’: Two Canadians lose $2.3 million to crypto scams
W5 | Canadians are being aggressively targeted by scammers using AI-generated videos and images to get them to invest in cryptocurrency scams.
Perspective on DOJ Indictment of Scam Compound Leader
NBC Bay Area | The Department of Justice has indicted the leader of a sophisticated crime network for operating scam compounds in Myanmar.
Dad lured to Bitcoin ATM by scammer claiming to be son
ABC7 - KGO | The voice on the phone sounded like his son. He’d been arrested. An attorney directed him to pay a $15,000 bail at a nearby Bitcoin ATM. But it was a scam.
How scammers use crypto ATMs to launder millions from victims
CBC News | An investigation of the crypto ATM industry in Canada showed that the machines have become the main way scammers get money from fraud victims in Canada.
Scammers spoof FBI website for cybercrime complaints
KHOU | The FBI is warning about fake websites designed to mimic the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The sites are designed to trick people into entering personal and banking details.