Kuala Lampur, Dec. 4 -- Financial scams and human trafficking have become the most dangerous criminal ecosystem in Southeast Asia.

The region is no longer dealing with petty fraud, but with a transnational industry worth close to US$100 billion(about RM412 billion) a year, fuelled by digital deception, coercion, and organised criminal networks that adapt faster than any government can respond.

The latest arrests by Thai police of Chinese nationals involved in sophisticated online scams illustrate just how embedded these networks have become.

Thailand is confronting a criminal threat that has slipped far beyond the confines of the Mekong hotspots.

Scam networks now operate in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Hat Yai, using urban anonym...