Cambodian Minister Warns Scammers Use Foreign SIM Cards to Trick Victims at Home

A senior Cambodian official has raised the alarm over online scam networks that exploit foreign SIM cards and telecom systems to deceive victims in their own countries, underscoring the urgent need for stronger cross-border cooperation to combat fraud.

Addressing the International Conference on Combating Online Scams (ICCOS-2026) in Phnom Penh on September 23, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Chea Vandeth said Cambodia's experience revealed that criminals frequently rely on phone numbers registered in the countries where their targets live, making scam calls and messages appear to originate locally.

"Criminals use phone numbers from the countries of the people they want to scam," Vandeth said.

According to the minister, offenders based in Cambodia can acquire SIM cards from abroad and then activate international roaming. Since the number looks local to the intended victim, the scammer comes across as more credible.

Cambodian investigators have found that vast numbers of foreign SIM cards are being smuggled into the country for use in fraud operations. During a single raid on a small scam compound, authorities seized more than 50,000 SIM cards originating from several nations, Vandeth said.

He urged every country to tighten SIM-card registration and identity checks before cards are handed out.

"No telco anywhere in the world should be allowed to sell anonymous SIM cards," he said.

Cambodia's Countermeasures

Vandeth outlined a range of steps Cambodia has taken to stop its telecom networks from being abused by criminal groups.

Since 2022, the Telecommunication Regulator of Cambodia (TRC) has cracked down on more than 330 illegal base stations, including equipment used to provide unauthorized services that support online scams, he said.

The Kingdom has also stepped up its campaign to dismantle the digital tools used by fraudsters. A dedicated monitoring unit has helped block over 53,000 illegal websites, while collaboration with leading platforms such as Meta, Telegram and Binance has led to the takedown of more than 5,300 accounts, pages and groups tied to scam recruitment, bogus job offers and online fraud.

A Call for Global Cooperation

The minister emphasized that domestic action alone cannot defeat the threat, since these criminal networks span borders.

"Cambodia cannot solve this problem on our own," he said, appealing to governments, regulators, police, banks, telecom firms and digital platforms to exchange intelligence, bolster identity verification and close the loopholes that criminals exploit.

"Only coordinated international action can close this gap," Vandeth added.