Voice Phishing Recruitment Rampant
Job Postings Exposed on Portal Sites
Crime Scale Expands, Leading to "Welfare Competition"
Most Recruited Workers Are Young People
Even If They Claim Employment Fraud After Arrest
Implied Intent Recognized... Difficult to Be Exonerated
"Overseas high-income part-time job recruitment. Yes, it's shady work. All you need is the desire to make money."
This was the content of an advertisement posted on an overseas job search site on July 21, 2025. A voice phishing organization based in Vietnam lured applicants with the promise of high earnings, stating, "The average monthly income is 20 million won, and if you do well, you can make up to 60 million won." They also claimed, "If you follow the manual, safety is guaranteed 10,000%."
A recruitment notice for voice phishing gang members posted on an online community. Online community
As the scale of voice phishing crimes grows, posts recruiting employees under the guise of high-income part-time jobs are appearing in large numbers. There are concerns that young people, exhausted by the tough job market, may easily fall for these temptations.
Searching for terms such as "overseas high-income part-time job" or "overseas TM (telemarketing)" on portal sites reveals countless job postings. On the job board of a Japanese-Korean community alone, hundreds of such ads have been posted just this month. Most of them promise high earnings of over 10 million won per month and offer accommodations in countries such as China, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia.
A significant number of these job postings are actually recruitment ads for voice phishing gang members. A team leader, Mr. A, who operates a voice phishing group based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, said via Telegram, "You will be doing the work you see on the news." When asked if it was voice phishing, he replied, "That's right." A recruiter, Mr. B, from an organization based in Thailand, said, "All you need is the desire to make big money," and added, "Just come with the mindset that you'll work during the day and enjoy your free time at night, like a working holiday."
According to the National Police Agency, the amount of financial damage from voice phishing last year was 854.5 billion won, a 91% increase compared to the previous year (447.2 billion won), marking an all-time high. During the same period, the number of cases rose from 18,902 to 20,839. As the scale of voice phishing grows, there is even "welfare competition" among organizations to secure manpower. A representative of one voice phishing group said, "You can live in a single hotel room, and if you work for more than three months, a condo will be provided."
Most of those who join voice phishing organizations through "overseas high-income part-time job" ads are young people. In fact, in a recent case handled by the Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office's government joint investigation team on voice phishing crimes, all 11 members of the "Romance Team" at the Cambodia-based "Hanya" call center were in their 20s and 30s.
The problem is that in voice phishing organizations that operate with a divided and anonymous structure, young recruits are often treated as "disposable pawns," making them more likely to be caught. Even if they claim to have been victims of employment fraud after being arrested, it is difficult for them to be exonerated. A prosecution official explained, "These days, voice phishing organizations often openly disclose that the work is voice phishing even at the recruitment stage to select so-called 'loyal personnel.'"
Lim Juntae, a professor in the Department of Police Administration at Dongguk University, emphasized, "There is an urgent need for government-level institutional improvements and continuous monitoring systems for the indiscriminate part-time and job postings on portal sites and overseas job boards." He also warned, "Young people who are lured by the promise of high earnings and participate in these crimes may still be found to have 'implied intent,' so the level of punishment is by no means light. Extra caution is needed."
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