The National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) has committed to regularly monitor and report on scam-related crimes, which have emerged as a growing social threat.
In its “Social Conditions Report for the Second Quarter of 2025”, the state planning agency cited data from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime indicating several neighbouring countries have become hubs for global cybercrime and online fraud networks. These include online gambling scams, romance scams and even human trafficking — activities that have caused significant economic losses to victims worldwide.
The NESDC said Thailand has intensified measures to combat international scammers and human traffickers, such as its “Three Cuts” policy (cutting electricity, fuel and internet) along the Thai-Myanmar border; restrictions on border crossings between Thailand and Cambodia; joint military-police border patrols; integrated intelligence sharing among multiple agencies; and stricter monitoring and screening of high-risk areas along the borders.
In addition, stronger measures were implemented to prevent technological crimes. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission approved a resolution on June 30 requiring service providers to share responsibility for damages caused by fraud.
Meanwhile, the Bank of Thailand mandated financial institutions limit fund transfers and payments to no more than 50,000 baht per day, with the rule enforced for new customers in August and for existing customers later this year.
A source from the Finance Ministry who requested anonymity said the economic impacts from scam gangs are clear and severe, falling into three categories:
1. Capital outflow: Tens of billions of baht are lost each year — money that should have supported consumption and investment is siphoned out of the economy.
2. Erosion of the digital economy: Scams undermines public trust in online transactions, slowing digital economy growth, which was designated as a national priority.
3. Enormous hidden costs: Both the government and financial institutions allocate vast budgets and resources to address these scams instead of improving other areas of service development.
The source said Singapore offers a model for addressing this issue, establishing the Anti-Scam Centre (ASC) in 2019, a one-stop service agency dedicated to preventing and combating cybercrime, particularly scams. The ASC operates under the Singapore Police Force and works in real time with the private sector.
Representatives from more than 10 banks are stationed at the centre, which cooperates with telecom companies to block suspicious phone numbers and messages. ASC officers can trace and freeze transferred funds within just a few hours. In six years, the ASC has frozen more than 27,000 bank accounts, recovered over S$200 million and arrested more than 10,000 suspects.