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Gavesh’s ordeal began with what seemed like a harmless job advertisement on Facebook that appealed to his urgent need for employment.
However, he quickly became ensnared in a scheme known as “pig butchering.” This deceptive practice involves scammers establishing romantic or personal connections online in order to extract money from unsuspecting victims. The organized crime groups behind these operations have amassed considerable wealth, often employing threats and coercion to compel trafficked individuals like Gavesh to execute fraudulent activities from large facilities, particularly in the lawless regions of Myanmar’s border areas.
In an effort to shed light on this issue, we engaged with Gavesh and five other workers entrenched in the scam industry, as well as experts in anti-trafficking and technology. Their insights highlight how major corporations, including American social media and dating platforms and international cryptocurrency and messaging services, have unintentionally facilitated the evolution of this fraudulent enterprise into a multi-billion-dollar industry.
Conversely, these technology giants may also possess the potential to dismantle these nefarious syndicates if they can be motivated or compelled to take action. For a deeper dive into this complex situation, read the full story.
—Peter Guest & Emily Fishbein
Preserving Our Glaciers
Our understanding of glacier dynamics remains limited, raising concerns about the potential for some of the world’s largest glaciers to rupture and flow into the oceans. Such an event could result in significant sea-level rise within this century, threatening to displace millions living in coastal areas.
A newly formed initiative seeks not only to expand our knowledge of glacier behavior but also to explore intervention strategies aimed at preserving them in the face of dire scenarios. One proposed solution includes the possibility of refreezing glaciers in situ to counteract the effects of climate change.
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www.technologyreview.com