The Thai government has launched a major crackdown on five areas along the Myanmar border, officially cutting off electricity, internet, and fuel supplies in an attempt to destroy the operational base of scamming groups through a "cut-off of electricity, internet, and fuel." The specific locations include:
Santashan Village - Piaodong Su (Mon State, Myanmar);
Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge No. 1—Daqili (Shan State, Myanmar, opposite Daqili in Shan State, Myanmar);
Meihongdeng—Daqili (Shan State, Myanmar);
Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge No. 2—Myawaddy (Karen State, Myanmar, opposite Myawaddy Province in Karen State, Myanmar);
Huimang—Myawadi (Karen State, Myanmar).
Previously, some questioned why the Ministry of Interior had not cut off the power supply in time. However, reality did not develop as expected—although the scam parks were affected in the short term, the criminals had already prepared for this, significantly reducing the effectiveness of the crackdown.
Thai Government's Major Move: Simultaneous Cut-off of Electricity, Internet, and Fuel
From the locations of the power cut, we can see that this operation involves multiple power supply points along the Thai-Myanmar border, including Myawaddy, Daqili, and others. These areas have long been hotspots for telecommunications fraud, human trafficking, and money laundering crimes!
Whether the Thai government is acting out of national security considerations or due to the recent impact of scam incidents on national reputation, in any case, Thailand is aware of the long-term existence of these criminal activities. Previously, they turned a blind eye, but now, due to the butterfly effect of the Wang Xing incident, they have openly stated their stance: to combat telecom fraud and human trafficking!
The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior of Thailand, Anutin, even personally pressed the power cut button, resolutely stating: "Even at the cost of losing hundreds of millions of Thai baht, we must cut off the power to protect national security."
From the decision-making perspective, the Thai government's attitude is very firm. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has clearly stated that he will not compromise under any external pressure.
Cutting off energy and network supplies is considered a powerful strike that was expected to paralyze the scamming groups instantly. But what is the actual effect....
Reality Check: Scamming Groups Were Prepared!
The development of events is far from simple! Although the Thai government's blockade measures affected the daily operations of the scam parks, it is clear that the parks had anticipated all this and had made preparations in advance.
1. Backup generators online: The scamming groups had already equipped themselves with small fuel generators. Although they cannot compare with the national power grid, they are more than sufficient to maintain basic operations. Even as Thailand also cut off fuel supplies, the scam groups could still obtain fuel through black market transactions, making the power crisis only a temporary inconvenience for them.
Netizens revealed that after Thailand banned fuel, a large number of vehicles in the Myawaddy area rushed to hoard fuel, and some netizens even witnessed parks driving fuel tankers to stock up on oil! The so-called policy from above, countermeasures from below. Even without large oil tankers, many companies managed to obtain numerous containers and hoarded a large amount of gasoline overnight.
On the evening of the 5th, Thai news reported that places like Ruikokotown and Ban Wang Pha in Daxiada Prefecture were still brightly lit that night, reportedly because these areas had large generators and had purchased hundreds of thousands of liters of diesel from Thailand in preparation for the power cut.
2. "Starlink" breaks the blockade: Most shockingly, some scam spots have already activated satellite internet systems, such as Musk's "Starlink," meaning that even if Thailand completely cuts off the internet, the criminal groups can still bypass the blockade and continue to communicate with the outside world. Relying on satellite communications, the scam gangs can still remotely control scams, even conducting transnational fraud operations.
3. Smuggling industry chain remains unobstructed: Despite Thailand cutting off oil and electricity, smuggling activities in the border areas remain rampant. Criminal gangs obtain fuel, power generation equipment, and even mobile signal boosters through various underground channels, making it difficult for Thai blockade measures to truly suppress them.
Take real-name registered phone cards, for example. Although phone card registration has been fully implemented in the country, a large number of non-real-name or falsely registered phone cards are still circulating in the black market. These phone cards mainly come from two sources: one is users actively selling their real-name registered phone cards, and the other is criminals using stolen identity information to illegally register new cards.
There are usually specialized upstream "number merchants" who collect these numbers through various illegal channels and then resell them to scam groups.
Why is it so difficult to eradicate scam parks?
Although Thailand's action to cut off the internet and electricity is unprecedented in scale, it has exposed a real problem—mere infrastructure blockades cannot completely eradicate the living space of scamming groups.
Firstly, scam parks themselves are "gray areas." In northern Myanmar, Shan State, and Karen State, government control is weak, and some areas are still controlled by local armed forces. Scam gangs in these areas often collude with local forces, forming intricate interest chains, making it difficult to truly dismantle them through external pressure, and instead, it may cause severe harm to ordinary citizens.
According to media reports, after the power cut, some oxygen factories in Myawaddy were forced to suspend operations, putting significant pressure on local medical resources and severely affecting patients who rely on oxygen therapy.
After the implementation of the oil cut measures, to avoid fuel hoarding, gas stations strictly prohibited the public from purchasing large amounts of fuel. However, the small amount of fuel is insufficient to support more potential power cuts in the future, causing great distress to the public.
In Daxili City and surrounding areas, oil prices began to rise rapidly after the Thai government restricted fuel exports. Although the prices at large gas stations remained stable for the time being, the prices of fuel sold by street vendors had soared to 60 to 100 Thai baht per bottle.
Although Thailand implemented a power cut policy, according to officials related to power supply management in Daxili, after Thailand cut off the power supply to Daxili, the city immediately took measures to import electricity from Laos to replace Thai power.
Secondly, the funding chain of scam groups remains unobstructed. Scam spots rely on illegal channels to obtain funds, using underground money houses, virtual currencies, and even casinos for money laundering. Even if they are affected in the short term, they can quickly resume operations.
This is also why, even though Chinese police have adopted measures such as "cutting off the internet" and "cutting off cards" in recent years, they still cannot completely eliminate scamming groups.
The real solution: Cross-border cooperation + technology tracking
Facing the escalating telecommunications fraud, relying solely on cutting off the internet, electricity, and fuel cannot fundamentally solve the problem. The truly effective methods must involve cross-border cooperation and high-tech strikes.
1. Strengthen cross-border law enforcement cooperation: The activities of scam groups involve multiple countries, and it is difficult to eradicate them with the efforts of Thailand or China alone. International cooperation is necessary to monitor the flow of scam funds, technical support chains, and scam spot locations comprehensively and to take synchronized strike actions.
2. Utilize artificial intelligence and big data technology: The traditional "cutting off the internet" and "cutting off cards" model is no longer sufficient to combat technologically upgraded scam groups. In the future, AI and big data should be used to track the flow of scam information and accurately target the source of scams. At the same time, blockchain technology should be used to strengthen financial regulation and block the channels for scam groups to transfer funds.
3. Eliminate internal "moles": The reason why scam groups can operate for a long time is inseparable from the help of some insiders in the industry. Previously, Chinese police cracked a case involving a black industry chain in the telecommunications sector, where scam groups obtained massive amounts of real-name information and phone numbers through "moles." Therefore, countries should strengthen industry self-examination to prevent scam groups from infiltrating from within.
Fighting scams cannot rely solely on "cutting off"!
Although Thailand's action this time showed a tough attitude, the reality also proves that simply "cutting off water, electricity, and the internet" cannot completely destroy scamming groups. Criminals are no longer the low-end mode that relied on landline phones and bank cards in the past, but rather operate using high technology, a globalized network, and a transnational financial system.
To truly eradicate telecommunications fraud, it is necessary to rely on international law enforcement cooperation, technology blockade, and financial regulation, rather than simply pressing a "power cut" button. Otherwise, just like this time—although it seems that everything has been cut off, scamming groups can still find ways to survive, and ultimately, it is the law enforcers themselves who are embarrassed.
