Today, leading tech companies announced the results of a major joint operation with law enforcement to disrupt criminal scam networks in Southeast Asia. The operation — the first of its kind to include companies from across the industry in the fight to protect people from online scammers — yielded significant enforcement actions by directly tying online activity to real-world criminals.

Results of the operation include: 

• Digital Disruptions: Meta disabled more than 1.4 million accounts, pages, and groups from Facebook and Instagram. Microsoft suspended approximately 20,000 fraudulent accounts linked to scam networks as part of this coordinated effort. 
• Real-World Action: Law enforcement has arrested 63 potential criminals connected to scam centers thus far. 
• Financial Seizures: Coinbase froze more than $3 million in cryptocurrency assets tied to criminal networks. 
• Intelligence Gains: The intelligence-sharing led to the identification of many potentially new scam center locations and networks, which were referred to law enforcement.
• Connectivity Disabled: Starlink continued to build on its consumer integrity efforts, which have terminated connectivity for thousands of Starlink kits that were attributed to unlawful use.

Working Across Industry to Find and Disrupt Criminal Scam Networks

Beginning on May 18, the US Department of Justice’s Scam Center Strike Force — led by the US Attorney for District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro — brought together Meta, Microsoft, Coinbase, Starlink, and other companies alongside the FBI, Secret Service, and law enforcement partners in the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Thailand. 

Throughout the week, partners gathered in Washington, DC to share actionable insights that helped connect the dots between disparate pieces of information across platforms. The collective effort of these tech companies allowed the operation to target and disrupt criminal scammers at nearly every point in the fraud attack chain. These criminal syndicates exploit millions of people worldwide — through romance scams, investment fraud, and forced labor in scam compounds — making coordinated disruption essential to protecting communities online.

Beginning on May 25 in Bangkok, the Royal Thai Police — in coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Scam Center Strike Force — continued the joint disruption efforts by bringing together Meta, the FBI, and law enforcement partners from Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Korea, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom.

Over the two weeks, we shared information, deepened partnerships and strengthened action to identify and target criminal syndicates behind online scams.

• “Protecting people around the world from scams is one of our highest priorities. The joint operation announced today – which included the removal of over a million accounts, the freezing of assets, and more than 60 arrests – demonstrates the power of partnerships to combat scammers. We’re proud to partner with industry and DOJ, FBI, Royal Thai Police, and other law enforcement agencies in taking this global fight directly to these Asia-based scam centers at their source.” – Chris Sonderby, VP and Deputy General Counsel, Meta
• “This marks our third joint operation with Meta and law enforcement partners across sectors, and the results demonstrate tangible progress in intercepting transnational online scam syndicates. Transnational online fraud cannot be solved by any single agency or country acting alone, which is why strong collaboration and timely information sharing remain essential to dismantling these networks and protecting the public.” –  Police Lieutenant General Jirabhop Bhuridej
• “Operations like this show what’s possible when technology companies and law enforcement work side by side. Scam networks operate across platforms and borders, and Microsoft remains committed to working with partners to combine visibility into scam infrastructure with real-world action, disrupting criminal networks at scale and holding those behind them accountable.” Steven Masada, Global Head of Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit
• “Blockchain technology is one of the most powerful tools we have in the fight against financial crime. Unlike traditional financial systems, the transparent and immutable nature of transaction data means bad actors can’t hide – every transaction leaves a trail. That transparency is exactly what allowed us to work with law enforcement to trace, freeze, and disrupt these criminal networks.” – Jeff Lunglhofer, CSO, Coinbase
• “As with any consumer product, the risk of abuse is always present and is not something that Starlink contends with in isolation. Starlink is committed to closing the digital divide while maintaining zero tolerance for abuse. We proactively detect and disable terminals involved in illegal activity and our Acceptable Use Policy strictly prohibits fraud and criminal exploitation. Through collaboration with law enforcement and technology companies, we advance global anti-scam efforts and ensure Starlink remains a force for good.” – Lauren Dreyer, Vice President of Starlink Business Operations at SpaceX

Taking the Fight Against Scammers to the Source

Online scammers constantly adapt their tactics, targeting multiple apps and platforms simultaneously to evade detection. Addressing this challenge requires coordinated, collective action across sectors — from technology platforms to internet providers and financial institutions, to governments and law enforcement agencies worldwide. 

This model of industry and law enforcement working together demonstrates clear results, and the participating companies remain committed to continuing this important collaboration to protect people online.