Cambodia has passed a sweeping new cybercrime law that targets the country’s booming online scam industry with some of its toughest penalties yet. Lawmakers say the legislation is a direct response to global criticism over brutal scam compounds that have turned Cambodia into a regional cybercrime hub.
Harsh Penalties for Scam Operators
The first legislative framework in Cambodia that focuses exclusively on technological fraud and scam centers is the new Law on Combating Online Scams. The bill received unusual unanimous support in parliament when all 112 members of the National Assembly voted in favor of it.
People who run internet fraud centers might face fines of up to 1 billion riels (about $250,000) and five to ten years in prison. If the activities include assault, torture, illegal imprisonment, human trafficking, or forced labor, the punishments go up to ten to twenty years in prison and fines can be as high as two billion riels.
Scammers on the internet who aren’t very good can be fined up to 500 million riels (approximately $125,000) and sent to prison for two to five years. If a fraud leads to someone’s death, the people who did it may face heavier punishments, such up to 30 years or life in prison.
Government Push to Clean Up Scam Centres
The law follows a pledge by Prime Minister Hun Manet’s government to shut down all online scam centers in Cambodia by the end of April. Officials say they have already shut about 80 percent of identified scam locations since a major crackdown began in mid‑2025.
Authorities have found at least 250 websites connected to internet fraud, many located in gated communities and casinos. Human rights organizations and foreign governments report widespread abuses in these facilities, including forced labor, imprisonment, and torture of trafficked workers from across Asia.
Koeut Rith, the deputy prime minister and minister of justice, warned MPs that internet scams endanger public safety and seriously harm Cambodia’s standing abroad. He said the new law gives police and prosecutors more authority to stop, investigate, and break up intricate cross-border fraud networks.
Following the luring, trafficking, and forced labor of their citizens in scam centers, nations like China, the US, the UK, and neighboring countries have put pressure on Phnom Penh to take action.
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