Cambodia Hosts Global Scam Conference, Declares Itself a Victim

PHNOM PENH, Sept. 23, 2026 (KPT) — Cambodia has described itself as a victim rather than the source of the global online scam crisis, as it hosts an international conference in Phnom Penh calling for stronger cross‑border cooperation to dismantle transnational criminal networks. Opening the International Conference on Combating Online Scams (ICCOS), Senior Minister Chhay Sinarith said foreign networks had used Cambodian territory to conduct scams against victims abroad, while the impacts had fallen heavily on Cambodia itself. “Cambodia is not the origin of online scams, but Cambodia has been selected as one of the countries where scam activities are conducted,” he said. Sinarith warned that the consequences extend beyond individual victims, affecting national security, public order, tourism, investment and Cambodia’s international reputation. He said scams had evolved into complex transnational organised crime linked to human trafficking, forced labour and money laundering. “These challenges are transnational in nature, evolve rapidly and exceed the capacity of any single state to address them effectively on its own,” he added. The two‑day meeting, held under Prime Minister Hun Manet’s presidency, has drawn delegations from 27 countries and six international organisations, with more than 500 participants. Officials said discussions will focus on law‑enforcement cooperation, financial investigations, victim protection and measures to disrupt networks. Sinarith said Cambodia initiated the conference to demonstrate its political commitment and thanked partners for support through information sharing, investigations, forensic work and repatriation of foreign nationals. Cambodia hopes the meeting will produce a joint declaration outlining shared commitments to strengthen cooperation, prevention, law enforcement and victim protection. “Only through collective efforts and comprehensive cooperation can we prevent, suppress and eliminate these transnational criminal networks,” Sinarith said.