Scam Inc from The Economist
4.5/5
Critic Rating
A sophisticated, predatory, multi-billion dollar industry is emerging from the shadows. It already rivals the size of the illicit drug trade. And it’s about to get bigger and much more powerful. The Economist’s Sue-Lin Wong follows a trail that starts with the collapse of a bank in rural Kansas to uncover a global, underground scam economy built around human trafficking, corruption and money laundering. Can it be stopped?To listen to the full series subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.
Critic Reviews
Score: 5
Giacomo Bagni • Orecchiabile Newsletter • Mar 13, 2025
"Attraverso una narrazione estremamente precisa e dettagliata, Sue-Lin Wong, inviata dall’Asia per The Economist, dipinge in Scam In. un quadro agghiacciante del fenomeno, restituendone l’enormità, a partire dalle storie dei dipendendi-detenuti di queste aziende, adescati tramite annunci di lavoro farlocchi e poi, di fatto, rapiti e costretti con la forza a diventare truffatori. Il tutto seguendo copioni e strategie perfezionate negli anni, che trasformano in vittime affermati professionisti, scienziati e perfino investigatori dell’FBI. ///////////////////////// Through an extremely precise and detailed narration, Sue-Lin Wong, correspondent from Asia for The Economist, paints in Scam In. a chilling picture of the phenomenon, returning its enormity, starting from the stories of the employee-detainees of these companies, lured through fake job ads and then, in fact, kidnapped and forcibly forced to become scammers. All following scripts and strategies perfected over the years, which transform established professionals, scientists and even FBI investigators into victims."
Score: 4
James Marriot • The Times UK • Feb 13, 2025
"...begins with an ambitious, beautifully phrased claim that may provoke some initial scepticism in its listeners...Scam Inc has an extraordinary story to tell. But it starts slowly and you have to stick with it to get there. As Wong comments, what ties the victims of these scams together is their hunger for “connection”. It’s a creepy thought. The loneliness of the affluent but isolated West is so big that a whole parasitic third-world criminal economy has flourished from it...All funded by the desperation of lonely people. An extraordinary story. Wong wasn’t over-hyping it at all."
