A Chinese-born billionaire wanted by US authorities for allegedly stealing at least $11 billion in bitcoin through a so-called “pig butchering” scam targeting Americans and others has been detained in Asia, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Chen Zhi, the chairman of Cambodia-based multinational conglomerate Prince Group, was arrested by Cambodian law enforcement and extradited to China, government officials in Cambodia said. The country’s interior ministry stated that Chen was taken into custody at the request of the Chinese government as part of ongoing cooperation to combat transnational crime.
In October, the US Justice Department said it was seeking Chen’s arrest on charges of wire fraud and money laundering, after seizing 127,271 bitcoin, valued at roughly $15 billion at the time.
A “Huge” Business
Margaret Cunningham, Vice President of Security & AI Strategy at Darktrace, said: “The business of pig butchering is absolutely huge. Professional scam organizations are investing a ton of resources into identifying targets via social media, and other channels, and building relationships with the targets, making them comfortable, and then ultimately ripping them off for everything they’ve got. It’s also worth highlighting that pig-butchering is a deeply “human” operation vs. a traditional style of technical cybercrime. The scam centers are using trafficked labor to work the targets and the more you look into it the worse it gets.”
According to her, pig butchering scams often go unreported because victims feel ashamed, confused, or believe nothing can be done. “If you ask friends and family if they know anyone who’s been scammed, almost everyone will say yes, and they’ll usually have a story to tell. That shows how widespread the problem really is, even though it’s hidden by under-reporting. This under-reporting allows attackers to operate with little resistance. These scams succeed because they combine familiar psychological triggers with modern automation and infrastructure. AI accelerates phishing, SMS blasters deliver it straight to mobile devices, and cryptocurrency ensures the payout is permanent.”
No Safety Net, Overarching Regulation
April Lenhard, Principal Product Manager, Cyber Threat Intelligence at Qualys, added: “Cryptocurrency related-scams are so attractive for cyber criminals because there is no safety net or overarching regulation. With no central bank or governing body, there is no ultimate authority to claw back money for fraudulent transactions. Cross-border prosecution is a legal labyrinth most victims never escape, and prosecution will face almost insurmountable challenges. Dealing in cryptocurrency is most like regular cash: once it’s gone, it’s gone.”
Lenhard said pig-butchering and romance schemes are emotional warfare, where the victims are sometimes conned out of their entire life savings. “Part of the problem is that there truly is another human being on the other end of the conversation, and they are incentivized to make you fall in love with their persona: that is their full-time job, and they are good at it. Scammers invest time, build trust, and then take the money and run.”
When receiving a suspicious message from an unknown user: think objectively, get a second opinion from someone you trust, and always verify before you invest. The old adage still applies that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. If an acquaintance you have never met is asking you to invest money, that is the quintessential sign of scheme.
Information Security Buzz News Editor
Kirsten Doyle has been in the technology journalism and editing space for nearly 24 years, during which time she has developed a great love for all aspects of technology, as well as words themselves. Her experience spans B2B tech, with a lot of focus on cybersecurity, cloud, enterprise, digital transformation, and data centre. Her specialties are in news, thought leadership, features, white papers, and PR writing, and she is an experienced editor for both print and online publications.
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