IFW Global, a world-leading private intelligence agency specialising in cybercrime, has orchestrated a ground-breaking investigation resulting in local authorities raiding two office locations in Cebu, Philippines.
This operation effectively dismantled a major crime gang’s boiler room fraud operation, utilising social media platforms to promote fake cryptocurrency trading websites.
IFW Global, alongside Executive Chairman Ken Gamble and agents from the National Bureau of Investigation, National Capital Region (NBI-NCR), collaborated with officials from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) NCR and Cebu.
Together, they arrested 35 individuals and seized a multitude of incriminating evidence, including scripts, mobile phones, laptops, desktop computers, and equipment crucial to the operation of the scam.
The heart of the operation lay in a call centre in Cebu, Philippines, where employees employed high-pressure sales tactics to deceive individuals into believing the fraudulent advertisements could produce high-yield investments using AI trading algorithms.
“These individuals are responsible for registering clients who are lured in by fake crypto investment advertisements across various social media platforms, ultimately preying on vulnerable victims, including mothers, fathers, and grandparents, costing them hundreds of millions of dollars annually”, said Ken Gamble.
IFW Global, acting on behalf of numerous victims, provided vital evidence to the authorities in Cebu, culminating in a joint law enforcement effort that put an end to the latest cybercrime activities orchestrated by an international gang. “Without enhanced collaboration between authorities across international borders and jurisdictions, these criminals will continue to thrive and devastate lives,” stated Mr. Gamble. “While we are satisfied to have disrupted this operation, we are aware that more such call centres will demand our attention as these criminals persistently pursue their nefarious activities under the radar of law enforcement”.
This marks the second significant investigation within a year in which IFW Global has played a vital role. In February 2023, Mr. Gamble spearheaded an operation with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in Malaysia, uncovering a scam group that had defrauded Australian victims of over $1 billion in share market scams resulting in 81 arrests. Codenamed Operation Tropicana, the operation involved SWAT teams from Malaysian Immigration, with no police officers participating directly in the operation.