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Southeast Asia’s $11 Billion Cybercrime Hub
July 10, 2024NewsroomOnline Scam / Blockchain
Cryptocurrency analysts have shed light on an online marketplace called HuiOne Guarantee, which is widely used by cybercriminals in Southeast Asia, particularly those involved in pig slaughter scams.
“Merchants on the platform offer money laundering technology, data and services and have transacted at least $11 billion,” Elliptic said. She said in a report shared with The Hacker News.
The British blockchain analytics firm said the marketplace is part of HuiOne Group, a Cambodian conglomerate linked to Cambodia’s ruling Hun family, and that another HuiOne company, HuiOne International Payments, is actively involved in money laundering scams globally.
According to his websiteHuiOne’s financial services arm is said to have 500,000 registered users. It also boasts Alipay, Huawei, PayGo Wallet, UnionPay and Yes Seatel as its customers.
Southeast Asian countries such as Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and the Philippines have become a fertile ground For pig slaughter scams in the last few years.
In these schemes, unsuspecting people from Asia and Africa are lured into the region with high-paying jobs, only to find themselves trapped in “scam complexes” run by transnational organised criminal groups coming from China and forced to participate in fraudulent activities.
This involves creating fake accounts on social media and dating platforms and using them to develop romantic relationships with victims and eventually convince them to invest in non-existent cryptocurrency companies with the aim of stealing their funds.
HuiOne Guarantee, founded in 2021, comprises a network of thousands of instant messaging app channels on Telegram operated by different merchants. While it claims to serve as a marketplace for real estate and cars, Elliptic said most of the goods and services offered are aimed at cyber scam operators.
“The largest category of merchants operating under the HuiOne Guarantee are those offering money transfer and exchange services,” the company explained.
“Many merchants explicitly offer money laundering services, including accepting payments from victims around the world, transferring them across borders, and converting them into other assets, including cash, stablecoins, and Chinese payment apps.”
Traders were also discovered advertising software and web development services that facilitated the creation of fraudulent cryptocurrency investment websites used in pig slaughter scams, as well as marketing tear gas, electric batons and electronic chains to be used by fraudulent complex operators to imprison and torture their workers.
According to the data shared According to SlowMist in early January, traders associated with HuiOne Guarantee, also known as Huiwang Guarantee, were said to have further engaged in cryptocurrency transactions with one wallet receiving over 4.6 million USDT from another wallet linked to the Myanmar Alliance Army.
“The value of cryptocurrency received by HuiOne Guarantee and its merchants, as well as the type of goods and services offered, suggest that this is a key driver for cyber scam operators in Southeast Asia,” Elliptic said.
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