Most crypto losses in Thailand are not hacks. They are a person persuaded to send, and a bank account frozen because baht arrived from someone else's loss.
Numbers
| Year | Measure | Value | Unit | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | reported online-crime losses, first year of the reporting system | 32,083 | million baht | 247,753 reports to Thai Police Online, 1 Mar 2022 to 21 Mar 2023[425] |
| 2023 | reported online-crime losses, cumulative | 38,156,125,167 | baht | 296,243 reports to Thai Police Online, 1 Mar 2022 to 31 May 2023 (Royal Thai Police figures)[426] |
| 2023 | investment-scam losses, cumulative | 11,550 | million baht (more than) | 23,616 online reports of investment scams, 1 Mar 2022 to 30 Jun 2023; stated by a deputy government spokesperson[427] |
| 2024 | reported online-crime losses, cumulative | 74,893,134,395 | baht | 708,141 reports, 1 Mar 2022 to 31 Oct 2024; investment fraud 26.9 billion baht of the total[428] |
| 2024 | average reported loss per day | 77 | million baht | 1 Mar 2022 to 31 Oct 2024; October 2024 alone averaged 89 million baht a day[428] |
| 2024 | scam funds frozen | 8,243,782,268 | baht | Frozen out of 43,040,600,310 baht requested, across 544,183 accounts, 1 Mar 2022 to 31 Oct 2024[428] |
| 2024 | reported online-crime losses, cumulative | 79,569,412,608 | baht | 773,118 online reports, 1 Mar 2022 to 31 Dec 2024 (Royal Thai Police online reporting centre)[429] |
| 2025 | reported online-crime losses | 6,549,576,749 | baht | 75,728 reports, 1 Jan to 26 Mar 2025, about 874 a day (Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau data)[430] |
| 2025 | average reported loss per day | 65 | million baht | February 2025, against an average of 117 million baht a day in early 2024 (Royal Thai Police data)[430] |
| 2025 | call-scam losses per day | 50 | million baht (less than) | Down from about 100 million baht a day before the February 2025 border cut-offs; stated by the Digital Economy and Society Minister[431] |
| 2025 | online fraud complaints, cumulative since 2022 | 1.09 | million complaints | Cumulative losses over 100 billion baht since 2022, per police at the launch of a mule-account operation[432] |
| 2025 | scam losses, survey estimate | 110 | billion baht | Global Anti-Scam Alliance survey of the past year; average 12,956 baht per person; six in ten Thais report being scammed. A survey estimate, not police reports[433] |
| 2026 | reported online-scam losses | 7.48 | billion baht | More than 120,000 complaints, January to April 2026 (Anti-Cyber Scam Centre)[434] |
| 2026 | online-scam losses | 9 | billion baht (nearly) | More than 170,000 cases, January to June 2026; average loss above 52,000 baht per case; Facebook linked to over 61% of cases (Thailand Consumers Council)[4] |
| 2026 | assets seized or frozen in the government anti-scam campaign | 24 | billion baht | Nine-month campaign reported by Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul; 29,233 suspects arrested, 122,840 URLs blocked, 291,498 suspicious numbers blocked; online scam cases down 69.2%[435] |
How they work
Call-centre gangs
แก๊งคอลเซ็นเตอร์
Callers pose as police, anti-money-laundering officers or other officials and tell the victim their account is tied to a crime. They demand transfers for an 'asset check' or to clear the victim's name. Thai PBS reports gangs using deepfake video calls in police uniform and fake cyber-police websites; police record the category as ข่มขู่ทางโทรศัพท์ (Call Center).[429][436][437]
- A caller says your account is linked to money laundering
- A request to transfer money so officials can check it
- A video call from someone in police uniform
- A website that claims to be the cyber police and asks for payment
Investment scams
หลอกให้ลงทุนผ่านระบบคอมพิวเตอร์
Ads, chat groups or new contacts promise unusually high returns and move the victim onto a platform that shows paper profits. Deposits go to accounts the scammers control. In police data from 1 Mar 2022 to 31 Oct 2024, investment fraud caused the largest losses of any category, 26.9 billion baht.[427][428][4]
- Returns described as far above normal
- Investment ads on Facebook or LINE
- A platform named by the contact that you cannot find on the SEC licence list
- Pressure to invest more after early gains
Pig-butchering
ขุนหมูให้อ้วนแล้วเชือด
A scammer makes contact by text, dating app or social media, builds trust or a relationship over weeks, then introduces a crypto trading platform the scammer controls. The platform shows fabricated gains and may allow a small withdrawal; larger withdrawals meet demands for taxes or early-withdrawal fees. FinCEN says the scams are largely run by Southeast Asian criminal groups using trafficked workers.[438][439]
- A chance message or match that turns into a close online relationship
- The contact brings up a crypto platform or app they use
- Profits that look very large on the platform
- A tax or fee demanded before a withdrawal
- A request for remote access to your device or exchange account
Romance scams
หลอกให้รักแล้วโอนเงิน
A contact builds an online relationship and then asks for money, or steers the victim into an investment. Thai police log it as a separate category: 2,167 reports from 1 Mar 2022 to 31 May 2023. When the ask is a crypto investment, the pattern overlaps with pig-butchering.[426][438]
- A relationship that exists only in chat or video calls
- Requests for money for an emergency, travel or fees
- Talk of an investment the contact says has worked for them
Fake exchange and trading apps
หลอกลงทุน/เทรดคริปโต
Victims are directed to a website or app built to look like an exchange. Balances on screen are set by the operator, and withdrawals are blocked or charged. The Thai SEC warns that unlicensed platforms carry scam risk and publishes both the list of licensed exchanges and a list of names that are not licensed.[440][441][442]
- The exchange is not on the SEC list of licensed digital asset exchanges
- The name appears on the SEC Investor Alert list
- A contact tells you which site or app to use
- Withdrawal needs another payment first
Online task and side-income scams
หลอกให้โอนเงินเพื่อทำงาน
Victims are offered pay for simple online tasks such as likes, shares or orders, receive small payouts, then are told to transfer larger sums to unlock earnings. It is the second most reported category in Thai police data, with 98,139 cases from 2022 to 2024.[443][444]
- Paid work for liking or sharing posts
- Small early payouts followed by a request to deposit
- Earnings held back until you pay more
Mule accounts
บัญชีม้า
Bank or crypto accounts opened, sold, rented or lent to receive and move scam money. Under the 2023 technology crime decree, account holders face up to 3 years in prison, a fine of up to 300,000 baht, or both; people who recruit or advertise accounts face 2 to 5 years and 200,000 to 500,000 baht. Police in November 2025 found 'mule farms' paying people to open accounts by facial recognition.[445][432][446]
- An offer of cash to open an account or lend yours
- A job that consists of receiving and forwarding transfers
- A request for your ID card, SIM card or a face scan
P2P crypto sales paid with scam money
ขายคริปโตแบบ P2P แล้วได้รับเงินที่มาจากการหลอกลวง
A scammer tells a victim to buy crypto from a P2P seller and send the coins to the scammer's wallet, or a buyer pays the seller with money taken from a victim. When the victim reports to 1441, every account that received the money can be frozen, the seller's included. In a September 2024 case, police accepted the seller had no part, but the freeze stayed until the complaint process ran its course.[447][448]
- Payment from a person other than the counterparty on the platform
- A buyer who says someone else told them to buy and send the coins
- A buyer who wants the coins sent to a wallet they do not control
Address poisoning
ที่อยู่กระเป๋าเลียนแบบ
Scammers study a wallet's frequent counterparties, generate lookalike addresses that differ in only a few characters, and send small test transfers so the lookalike appears in the victim's history. The victim later copies the wrong address from that history. In one May 2024 case a holder sent about $68 million in WBTC to a poisoned address; most was returned.[449]
- Unexpected small transfers from unknown addresses
- An address in your history that looks like a known one but differs in a few characters
- Copying a destination from transaction history instead of a saved contact
Clipboard hijackers and wallet-stealing malware
มัลแวร์สลับที่อยู่ในคลิปบอร์ดและมัลแวร์ขโมยกระเป๋า
Malware watches the clipboard and swaps a copied wallet address for the attacker's before it is pasted. Other variants search a device for seed phrases, wallet files or authenticator backups. In a case Thailand's CCIB worked in November 2025, malware sought Google Authenticator backups and seed phrases, and attackers took over exchange accounts.[450][451]
- A pasted address that differs from the one you copied
- Seed phrases or authenticator backups stored as files or photos
- Software installed from a link in a chat or ad
Wallet drainers, approval phishing and fake airdrops
เว็บดูดเงินจากกระเป๋า หลอกให้กดอนุมัติ และแอร์ดรอปปลอม
Fake sites posing as NFT markets, token airdrops or project pages ask the user to connect a wallet and approve a transaction. The approval gives the operator control of tokens, which are taken at once. Links spread through hacked social media accounts, Discord channels and fake announcements.[452]
- A free airdrop or mint that needs a wallet connection
- An approval or signature request you cannot read
- A link posted by a project's social account or Discord, which may be hacked
Fake recovery services and fake cyber-police sites
บริการตามเงินคืนปลอมและเว็บตำรวจไซเบอร์ปลอม
After a loss, victims are contacted by people who claim they can get the money back for a fee, or find websites posing as the cyber police. The FBI warns that anyone claiming they can recover funds may be running another scam. Thai PBS reports gangs building fake cyber-police websites.[442][429]
- An offer to recover lost crypto for an upfront fee
- A 'police' site that is not thaipoliceonline.go.th
- Contact from a recovery firm you did not approach
Remote-access apps that drain accounts
แอปดูดเงิน
The victim is sent a link and persuaded to install an app that gives the scammer remote control of the phone; the scammer then empties bank accounts. Thai police list it as หลอกให้ติดตั้งโปรแกรมควบคุมระบบ, with 4,786 reports from 1 Mar 2022 to 31 May 2023. The CCIB groups its warnings under หลอกติดตั้งแอป/แอปดูดเงิน.[429][426][441]
- A request to install an app from a link rather than an app store
- A caller who asks you to tap a link during the call
- A caller who asks for control of your screen
Where to report
Thai Police Online (online police report)
ระบบรับแจ้งความออนไลน์
File a police report for online fraud and technology crime. Police name this site and hotline 1441 as the channels for online reports.
Hotline 1441
สายด่วน 1441
24-hour hotline for technology crime advice; the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society's AOC 1441 service coordinates freezing of scammers' bank accounts.
Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB)
กองบัญชาการตำรวจสืบสวนสอบสวนอาชญากรรมทางเทคโนโลยี (บช.สอท.)
Police bureau for technology crime. Its site lists division phone numbers and publishes warnings by scam type, including crypto trading scams, money-draining apps and mule accounts.
Your bank's hotline (account freeze)
แจ้งอายัดบัญชี
Under the 2023 technology crime decree, a victim can ask the bank to suspend the receiving account at once, without first filing a police report.
https://thaipublica.org/2023/03/electronic-crime-law-effective-now/
Bank of Thailand 1213
ธนาคารแห่งประเทศไทย โทร. 1213
Central bank line for questions and complaints about financial services; complaints by email go to [email protected].
DSI Call Center 1202
กรมสอบสวนคดีพิเศษ
Department of Special Investigation call centre for complaints and petitions about special cases, such as large fraud schemes.
SEC licensed digital asset exchanges
ผู้ประกอบธุรกิจที่ได้รับใบอนุญาตศูนย์ซื้อขายสินทรัพย์ดิจิทัล
SEC list of licensed exchanges, brokers, dealers and custodians. The SEC also points to its SEC Check First app for licence checks.
https://market.sec.or.th/LicenseCheck/views/DABusiness?exchange
SEC Investor Alert
รายชื่อผู้ที่มิใช่ผู้ประกอบธุรกิจภายใต้การกำกับดูแลของ ก.ล.ต.
SEC list of people and platforms that are not licensed, including unlicensed digital asset businesses, compiled from public enquiries.
SEC complaint and tip-off centre 1207
ศูนย์รับเรื่องร้องเรียนและแจ้งเบาะแส
Report a suspected unlicensed platform or investment solicitation by phone on 1207, by email to [email protected], or via SEC Live Chat.
Cases
- OFAC widens Prince Group sanctions to a Thailand-based firm
OFAC and FinCEN designate 9 more individuals and 26 entities linked to the Prince Group, including Thailand-based White Horse Hotel Management Group Co., Ltd.[453]
- SEC-flagged block of the Exmix platform
A Thai SEC news headline tells investors to deal with their assets on the Exmix platform before it is blocked on 2 May 2026. Only the headline was seen; the release text was not loaded. reported[440]
- OFAC sanctions Cambodian senator Kok An
OFAC sanctions Kok An and 28 other individuals and entities tied to scam compounds, including Crown Resorts properties in Poipet on the Thai border, Sihanoukville and Bavet.[454]
- 14 Thais cross back after escaping a Bavet scam centre
Thai troops detain 14 Thais (9 men, 5 women) who crossed into Aranyaprathet, Sa Kaeo, after escaping a scam centre in Bavet, Cambodia. They say they were recruited on Facebook for 25,000-baht office jobs and assaulted for missing targets.[455]
- Chen Zhi arrested in Cambodia and sent to China
Cambodia's Interior Ministry says Prince Group chairman Chen Zhi was arrested on 6 January 2026 with two other Chinese nationals and sent to China; it confirms the extradition on 8 January. Cambodia revoked his citizenship by royal decree in December 2025.[456]
- AMLO freezes over 10 billion baht linked to Chen Zhi and Kok An networks
AMLO announces a freeze of assets exceeding 10 billion baht from networks of Prince Group chairman Chen Zhi and Cambodian senator Kok An. The same report says cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society blocked unlicensed foreign platforms and suspended over 44,000 proxy accounts. reported[457]
- CCIB recovers $432,000 in USDT from malware theft
Thailand's CCIB traces funds stolen by malware-based account takeovers; Tether freezes the USDT and Bitkub's team disables auto-sweep contracts so the funds move to government custody. Binance and TRM Labs also take part. The amount is over 14 million baht. reported[451]
- Shwe Kokko seized; KK Park demolition blasts hit Thai homes
Myanmar's military, Myawaddy police and the Karen Border Guard Force seize the Shwe Kokko complex and detain 346 foreign nationals, mostly Chinese. Detonations used to demolish KK Park damage at least five homes on the Thai side of the Moei River.[458][459]
- 'Lightning Strike' operation against mule accounts
The Central Investigation Bureau runs a nationwide operation against mule accounts from 18 to 26 November 2025, arresting 339 suspects, 209 of whom confess to opening mule accounts, and identifying 55 recruiting cells in 27 provinces. Police report 'mule farms', SIM-box hubs and cryptocurrency scam websites.[432]
- Tether, Thai police and US Secret Service seize 12 million USDT
Tether says it supported the Royal Thai Police and the US Secret Service in tracing and seizing about 12 million USDT (roughly 400 million baht) tied to a Southeast Asian scam network. Police arrest 73 suspects, 51 Thai and 22 foreign, and seize assets worth more than 522 million baht. reported[460]
- OFAC sanctions DKBA and a Thailand-based company over Tai Chang compound
OFAC sanctions the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army and its leaders over the Tai Chang scam compound near Myawaddy, along with Trans Asia International Holding Group Thailand Company Limited and its director Chamu Sawang (Yu Jianjun).[463]
- US and UK sanction Prince Group; DOJ seeks 127,271 BTC
OFAC designates Cambodia's Prince Group as a transnational criminal organization and sanctions 146 targets, with the UK FCDO sanctioning Prince Holding Group, Chen Zhi and associates the same day. The DOJ indicts Chen Zhi on wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges and files a civil forfeiture action for about 127,271 bitcoin, about $15 billion, its largest ever. FinCEN finalizes a rule cutting Huione Group off from the US financial system.[464][439][465]
- Myanmar junta raids KK Park
Myanmar's military says it has raided KK Park near Myawaddy, opposite Mae Sot, finding 2,198 people and seizing 30 Starlink terminals. On 22 October people leave the Myawaddy area toward the Thai border crossing, and explosions at the compound are reported from 23 October. The figures are the junta's.[466][467][468]
- SEC names five unlicensed exchanges for blocking
The SEC says Bybit, 1000X, CoinEx, OKX (okx.com/th) and XT.COM serve Thai users without a licence, files complaints with the Economic Crime Suppression Division, and passes the names to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, which blocks access from 28 June 2025. Users are told to deal with their assets before that date.[440][469]
- Amended technology crime decree takes effect
The Emergency Decree on technology crime (No. 2) B.E. 2568, published on 12 April, takes effect with a companion amendment to the digital asset decree. Banks, telecom operators and platforms share liability for scam losses when they fall short of regulators' standards; digital asset operators must report suspicious activity and suspend flagged accounts; foreign platforms serving people in Thailand need a Thai licence.[470][471][472][473]
- Scam-compound workers repatriated through Mae Sot
The first 50 Chinese nationals brought out of Myawaddy scam centres fly home from Mae Sot on 20 February, with 600 due to leave on chartered flights by 22 February. By 18 March, Thai police say 5,200 people have been pulled out of Myawaddy-area compounds since February and over 3,500 sent home through Thailand, with up to 100,000 still inside.[474][475][476]
- Thailand cuts power, fuel and internet to Myanmar scam towns
After a National Security Council meeting, Thailand stops electricity, fuel and internet supply to Myawaddy, Payathonzu and Tachileik, border areas that host scam compounds. The Record cites over 100,000 workers in the compounds.[477]
- Thai police freeze $2.5 million in USDT from alleged scam bosses
Thai police working with Chinese police arrest two Chinese nationals in Bangkok and freeze about $2.5 million (about 84 million baht) in USDT. Investigators link them to trafficking near Mae Sot, product-sale fraud in Thailand and offices in Phnom Penh.[478]
- The iCon Group arrests
Police and the DSI move against The iCon Group, a direct-sales business accused of running a pyramid scheme. On 17 October, 17 suspects, including celebrities Yuranunt Pamornmontri and Kan Kantathavorn, are remanded after the Criminal Court rejects bail; CEO Warathaphon 'Boss Paul' Waratyaworrakul appears in court on 18 October. By then more than 2,000 complainants report combined losses of 841 million baht, and AMLO has impounded about 125 million baht in assets. Not a crypto case.[479][480][481][482]
- Technology crime decree takes effect
The Emergency Decree on Measures to Prevent and Suppress Technology Crimes B.E. 2566 takes effect. It lets banks suspend suspect accounts on a victim's notice and share data with telecom operators, and sets penalties for opening, renting or lending mule accounts and SIM cards.[446]
- Zipmex suspends withdrawals
Zipmex suspends withdrawals, citing the troubles of partners Babel Finance and Celsius, to which it has $53 million of exposure. Withdrawals in Thailand resume late the same day except from one investment product; the company says it is cooperating with the Thai SEC.[483]
- SEC fines Bitkub 3.97 million baht
The SEC board fines Bitkub Online 3.97 million baht for failing to deposit clients' digital assets with a qualified custodian from January to July 2021 and for seven charges tied to an insecure trading system.[484]
- Thai SEC files criminal complaint against Binance
The SEC files a criminal complaint with the police Economic Crime Suppression Division against Binance for running a digital asset exchange for Thai users without a licence, under Section 26 of the 2018 Digital Asset Businesses decree. Binance had not answered an SEC warning letter sent on 5 April 2021.[485]