Why Are So Many Young South Koreans Going to Cambodia for “Easy, High-Paying Jobs” — and Falling into Modern Slavery?

 The tragedy began, as it often does, with a message that looked like hope.

“Work abroad. High salary. No experience needed. Safe environment. Free housing and flights.”
That was the kind of advertisement 22-year-old university student Park received before he flew to Cambodia in July. Three weeks later, his body was found near a fraudulent cybercrime compound on Bokor Mountain in Kampot. He had been beaten so severely that, according to a witness, “he could no longer walk or breathe”.


an interview

Park became another victim of a growing phenomenon: young South Koreans being lured to Southeast Asia by promises of easy money, only to be trapped in criminal syndicates running online scams, illegal call centers, money laundering operations, and human trafficking.

According to South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 330 South Koreans have been illegally detained in Cambodia as of August 2025, compared to only 17 cases in 2022. Human rights groups warn the true number is much higher, as many victims are too afraid to report or are unwilling to return home empty-handed.

This is not merely a crime story. It is a story about economic despair, distorted social values, the evolution of organized crime, and the vulnerability of a generation that feels locked out of opportunity.

The Economic Backdrop: A Generation Losing Faith in the System

South Korea’s overall unemployment rate sits at 2.5% – low by international standards. But that number hides a darker reality: youth unemployment is at 7.2%, nearly three times higher.

More than 560,000 university graduates were still unemployed one year after finishing school. 230,000 remained jobless for three years. Despite Korea’s reputation as a technology powerhouse, even skilled IT graduates struggle to find entry-level opportunities.

Many young people jokingly describe their country not as “Hell Joseon” anymore, but “Frozen Hell Joseon” — an economy frozen in unfair competition and inequality. Housing prices are out of reach. Corporate hiring is brutally competitive. Social mobility is stagnant. Savings feel impossible.

So when strangers online whisper seductively:

“Why struggle in Korea? Come to Cambodia or Thailand — earn $8,000 a month just by working online.”
thousands of frustrated young people listen.

The Crime Industry Behind “Easy Jobs Abroad”

The job postings are always the same:

In reality, these are fronts for online scam operations run by transnational crime syndicates, many backed by Chinese organized crime networks who moved operations to Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos to escape law enforcement pressure. They operate massive cyber-fraud centers disguised as office buildings—but surrounded by fences, guards with guns, and barred windows.

Once victims arrive:

PromiseReality
High salaryLarge “recruitment debt,” forced labor
Easy office jobScam operations, crypto fraud
Free housingOvercrowded, guarded compounds
Travel freedomPassports confiscated
Safe environmentBeatings, torture, threats
Work abroad experienceHuman trafficking

Victims are often forced to scam their own countrymen — they impersonate bank officers, prosecutors, and investment agents to trick South Koreans into transferring money. If they refuse, they are isolated, beaten, electrocuted, starved, or sold to another syndicate.

This is modern digital slavery.

Why Do Some Victims Still Defend Their Captors?

One of the most disturbing aspects revealed by Korean rescue groups: many victims don’t think they are victims at all.

Police report shocking cases where people refused rescue because they still hoped to earn money.

“They tell us, ‘I wasn’t kidnapped. I came here to work and I can still make money,’” said Oh Changsu, leader of the Korean community in Sihanoukville. Many knowingly join illegal scams because they see it as a victimless crime — “I’m just calling strangers. Who cares?” They ignore the fact that those “strangers” are often elderly people, small business owners, or families who lose their life savings to scam operations.

This reveals something alarming: a moral erosion in part of today’s youth, driven by financial desperation and social alienation. Some young people are no longer choosing right or wrong—they simply choose profit.

Cambodia Is Not the Problem — Vulnerability Is

It would be a mistake to blame Cambodia alone. Cambodia has been trying to crack down on foreign crime syndicates, though corruption and weak law enforcement make progress difficult.

The real issue is vulnerability:

  • Vulnerability created by economic inequality.

  • Exploited by transnational organized crime.

  • Amplified by false hope and social media manipulation.

And this is not just happening to South Koreans. Vietnamese, Filipinos, Thais, Indonesians, Malaysians — thousands have fallen into the same trap. This is now a regional crisis, not a single-nation tragedy.

How Crime Syndicates Weaponize Technology and Psychology

These criminal organizations operate like professional corporations:

  •  HR departments for recruitment.
  •  Strict performance KPIs.
  •  Bonuses for “top scammers”.
  •  “Sales quotas” — if you don’t hit targets, you get beaten.
  •  Fake employment contracts to appear legitimate.
  • “Debt bondage” to control workers.

Recruits think they are employees. In fact, they are digital hostages, sentenced to forced cybercrime.

Who Is Responsible?

This crisis is bigger than individual crimes. The system is broken.

ActorResponsibility
Korean governmentToo slow to regulate online recruiting fraud
Social media platformsTelegram, TikTok, job sites allow scam posts
Criminal syndicatesExploiting vulnerable youth
VictimsSome knowingly choose illegal work
SocietyGlorifying fast money over honest labor

As Professor Lee Byoung-hoon from Chung-Ang University said:

“Chasing unrealistic profit leads either to crime — or to becoming a victim of crime.”

The Human Cost: Broken Families and Silent Suffering

Behind every rescue statistic is a crying mother, a silent father ashamed to speak, and a young life scarred forever.

Some victims return home with PTSD, trauma, debt, and criminal records because they were forced to scam others. Many cannot find jobs again. Some are too ashamed to tell their families what really happened.

Others never return at all.

What Needs to Happen – Now

  • Criminalize deceptive overseas job recruitment.
  • Mandatory verification for job ads involving overseas work.
  • Public awareness campaigns targeting youth.
  • Stronger cooperation with Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar.
  • Rehabilitation support for those returning from scam compounds.
  • Teach digital ethics and media literacy in schools.

This is not just a crime story. It is a warning.

When a society values money more than meaning, when young people feel trapped economically, when crime becomes easier than opportunity, then human trafficking doesn’t need chains anymore—it just needs a job posting.


Liliana

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