Pig butchering scams are the most growing on social media right now, with the death of a Malaysian who was forced to do it in Laos. It is carried out by an organized crime organization with an estimated loss of $75 billion through 2023.
With their platform becoming the platform of choice for pig slaughter scams, Meta today announced that they have deleted over 2 million accounts used to defraud users. The deleted accounts involved fraudulent operations in Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, the UAE and the Philippines.
Meta is working with several anti-crime agencies such as the Royal Thai Police to detect active fraudulent operations. Based on information received, monitoring account activity and industry partners such as OpenAI, the system identifies accounts used by fraudsters. This system is also able to automatically block accounts when it detects fraudulent activity being carried out.
Pig slaughter scam activities receive this unpleasant name because they begin with victims receiving messages from unknown individuals. It then develops into a romantic relationship with the victim being caressed until they are tricked into investing in crypto. After the money is stolen, the victim is ignored. It is like a farmer who takes good care of his pigs before slaughtering them for sale.
There are many Malaysians who are forced to become pig butchers in Cambodia after being deceived by human trafficking syndicates who promise lucrative salaries in the country. Those who try to escape are killed by the syndicates which are run by organized crime groups.