INTERPOL has announced the launch of its first task force dedicated to combating fraud, as international cooperation intensifies to address the growing threat of online scams and cyber-enabled crime.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the International Conference on Combating Online Scams in Phnom Penh on Sept. 23, Mr. Nicholas Court, Director of the Task Force Coordination Directorate at INTERPOL, commended Cambodia and the Cambodian National Police for their efforts to strengthen the fight against online scams.
He highlighted Cambodia’s recent measures, including the enactment of a new law on combating online scams earlier this year, which provides law enforcement authorities with additional powers to tackle the crime. He also noted Cambodia’s endorsement of the Call to Action adopted at the joint INTERPOL-UNODC Global Fraud Summit in Vienna in March 2026.
Mr. Court described fraud as the most pervasive criminal threat globally, affecting businesses and individuals as well as people who are themselves victims of trafficking and exploitation within scam operations.
He stressed that fraud is not merely a crime measured by financial losses, but a human crime with serious consequences, including geopolitical challenges, lost tax revenues, business closures and physical harm to victims. In the most severe cases, he said, the consequences can include suicide.
To strengthen international responses, INTERPOL has provided operational support to member countries through various initiatives. Under Operation Haechi, participating countries recovered US$340 million and froze 68,000 bank accounts, while Operation First Light resulted in 5,800 arrests and the recovery of a further US$300 million, according to Mr. Court.
He announced that INTERPOL is now launching Task Force Shadow Storm, its first task force specifically targeting fraud. The initiative will bring investigators from participating member countries, including Cambodia, together at INTERPOL premises in Singapore to access and assess actionable intelligence.
Mr. Court said the task force would enable participating countries to turn intelligence into operational action against cyber-enabled criminals, with the goal of increasing arrests, shutting down scam centres and protecting more victims.
He said the threat posed by fraud is growing, but stressed that the willingness of INTERPOL and its member countries to respond is also increasing. Through collective efforts, countries have the capacity to curb the flow of fraud and better protect their citizens, he added.
Mr. Court welcomed the Phnom Penh Declaration, particularly its recognition of the importance of international cooperation in combating fraud, and reaffirmed INTERPOL’s readiness to make its tools and operational capabilities available to the Declaration’s signatories to help translate their commitments into concrete results.
