Filipinos warned vs. illegal call center job offers

HONOLULU, HAWAII — The Philippine embassy in Hawaii warned Filipinos against illegal call center jobs run by crypto scammers and criminal syndicates.
The embassy said that some Filipinos in the region have fallen victims to “spurious job offers.”
“Once they are recruited, the Filipino victims are issued tickets to fly to a Southeast Asian country, from which they are taken to adjacent countries and brought to remote areas,” the embassy said.
The embassy added that those recruited “are forced to work as online scammers engaged in cryptocurrency” among others.
Victims are also known to have been abused physically and psychologically, and are forced to work under inhumane working conditions. The embassy said that some are even held hostage in exchange for ransom.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has already helped Filipinos from Myanmar and Cambodia who were victimized by similar syndicate groups.