Satellite tech fuels illegal gambling ops in Asia
Technology has advanced to a point where the internet no longer depends solely on cables buried under the sea or mobile towers rising above cities. Today, satellites orbiting just a few hundred kilometres above Earth can beam high-speed broadband directly to users below. This modern tech has reshaped global communication and redefined how people connect.
Unlike fibre networks that require expensive ground infrastructure, satellite internet delivers connectivity from orbit straight to a user terminal. This approach is particularly transformative for countries where geography has long limited digital growth.
Rapid digital upswing in Southeast Asia
Few regions illustrate this transformation more strikingly. Southeast Asia, for decades, has had patchy broadband access that has held back progress in education, commerce and healthcare. But today, things have started to improve. Across the region, broadband availability in underserved locations has risen. According to the OECD report Extending Broadband Connectivity in Southeast Asia (2023), fixed broadband subscriptions in SEA grew at an average annual rate of 15 percent from 2010 to 2022.
The same OECD report shows that mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in many SEA countries passed 100 (i.e., more subscriptions than people) by 2022, indicating strong uptake.
New connectivity, new threats
However, this rapid expansion has an unsettling side effect. The same technology enabling digital inclusion has also become a valuable tool for criminal organisations, especially in the online gambling and cyber-scam sector, that have grown rapidly in parts of the region.
Illegal operators in several Southeast Asian countries like Myanmar and Cambodia, where enforcement is uneven due to political conflict, border disputes and corruption, are turning to satellite internet to evade surveillance. By positioning themselves in remote areas with limited government presence, these networks can operate more freely while running services that target victims across Asia and beyond.
Satellite technology is proving difficult for authorities to monitor or shut down. Even when governments block local mobile networks or cut land-based fibre cables, satellite links continue functioning independently.
The KK Park raid
One major raid in Myanmar recently drew international attention to the severity of the problem. On 21 October 2025, the country’s military authorities stormed a large cyber-scam compound near the border with Thailand, detaining more than 2,000 workers, including 445 women. Their nationalities were not immediately confirmed.
The focal point of the recent raid was KK Park, a big complex on the outskirts of Myawaddy, the busiest trading route between Myanmar and Thailand. The city sits directly across the Moei river from Mae Sot, a Thai border town.
State media reported the seizure of 30 Starlink receivers and related equipment in the raid. The discovery raised concern because Starlink is not licenced in Myanmar. Yet the devices have made their way in through Thailand’s porous frontier, often smuggled in bulk.
Starlink’s appeal for criminal networks is simple: it continues operating even during local shutdowns, blackouts or government censorship. Its satellites and global ground stations are not tied to any one country’s authority. But, following the crackdown, SpaceX confirmed that it had disabled satellite connectivity for more than 2,500 terminals suspected of being used by cybercrime groups in the country.
Exploitation of human rights
Authorities say that during the operation, they took control of nearly 200 buildings inside the site and rescued around 2,200 trafficked workers. As many as 15 Chinese nationals were arrested on suspicion of involvement in online gambling, digital fraud and related offences.
For at least five years, this area has been linked to large-scale criminal activity such as cryptocurrency scams and human trafficking. The compound lies in territory influenced by armed groups who allegedly use these operations to generate revenue. One such group, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army, is accused of enabling the business while operating in areas close to the Thai border.
Myanmar’s military claims senior members of the Karen National Union, a powerful political organisation that leads part of the armed resistance against the army, were involved as well. However, the Karen National Union denies the accusation. As the country remains torn by civil war, accountability is hard to establish.
Trapped by false promises
As the investigation ensues, it has been revealed that many of the people working inside these compounds did not arrive by choice. They were victims of a sophisticated recruitment strategy. Scam operators target job-seekers through social media and messaging platforms, offering roles in IT support, customer service or sales with high salaries and benefits. Fake contracts, staged interviews and prepaid travel make the job offers seem genuine.
As reported by DD News, the victims were reportedly first taken to Thailand and then trafficked into Myanmar, where their passports and phones are confiscated as soon as they arrive. Unable to leave, they were forced to conduct online scams targeting strangers around the world — often using romance or investment schemes.
Failure to meet daily financial targets led to beatings, solitary confinement, food deprivation or even torture. Survivors describe the compounds as high-tech prisons with surveillance cameras, armed guards and digital monitoring systems that track every movement.
The deception behind these operations came into the spotlight earlier this year when Chinese actor Wang Xing was rescued after he was lured by what he believed was a legitimate film job. His experience exposed just how far these criminal networks will go.
The tech challenge for regulators
The use of satellite internet by such groups has raised urgent questions about regulation and enforcement. Authorities, not just in Southeast Asia but across the world, are struggling to control illegal networks that are no longer dependent on domestic infrastructure. Even when police locate compounds, satellite terminals can relocate quickly, and new operations open up as soon as others are shut down.
Governments are pushing for stricter obligations on satellite companies, including licensing rules, data-sharing frameworks and safeguards to prevent terminals from being smuggled into unapproved regions. But the technology is advancing faster than policymaking.
Compliance must keep pace
And that experts believe is a major concern. In an exclusive comment to SiGMA World on the issue, Riaan Van Rooyen, an iGaming expert and CEO of Aria Group International, believes the rise of satellite connectivity represents a turning point for the region with both immense potential and substantial risks.
“Without fast, clear regulation, opportunity turns into exploitation because people always chase profit, legal or not.”
– Rian Van Rooyen, CEO, Aria Group International
Rian argues that while the technology boosts remote healthcare, tourism and education, it also exposes users to unregulated digital markets. He stressed, “We have already seen licensing battles in India, investigations in Sri Lanka, shutdowns in Namibia. Access without accountability becomes exploitation.”
On the question of opportunity versus challenge, Riaan explained that satellite technology brings clear advantages but demands caution in how it is deployed. Rian stressed, “For me, the opportunity is obvious. Remote tourism in Sri Lanka, rural connectivity in India, explorers and shipping crews — they all benefit enormously from a reliable internet link where no fibre or cable exists. I’ve seen firsthand how satellite connections open doors to education, trade and safety in places that were previously cut off from the world.”
However, he added, “But I can’t ignore the other side. Scam hubs in Southeast Asia are already using this technology to exploit people, operating from hidden border zones where oversight barely reaches. In the iGaming sector, remote connectivity could easily become another way to target and milk the poor under the banner of entertainment. That concerns me deeply.”
All in all, space-powered internet has the potential to become one of the greatest tools of modern history if it is guided by oversight strong enough to prevent the exploitation it currently risks enabling. Satellite internet has brought not just Asia, but almost every continent closer together, where connectivity is not determined by location or infrastructure. But in a region where border governance is knotty and criminal networks are quick to adapt, technology can also accelerate harm.
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