BANGKOK, Thailand – Efforts to dismantle criminal financial networks have intensified nationwide, with large-scale account suspensions and arrests underway.
The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society has aggressively accelerated efforts to cut off financial networks used by fraudsters. From November 2023 to the end of March this year, authorities successfully suspended more than 582,000 mule accounts.
In just the first three months of 2025, about 135,300 mule accounts were deactivated—excluding those suspended by the Anti-Money Laundering Office and commercial banks.
Within the same three-month period, 870 individuals were arrested in connection with mule accounts and fraudulent SIM cards.
Between October 2023 and March 2025, 5,400 suspects were arrested for violating the 2023 Cyber Crimes Suppression law.
Anyone who allows others to use their bank account, known as a “mule account,” will face legal prosecution, with penalties of up to three years in prison, fines of up to 300,000 baht, or both. Offenders may also face additional charges as co-conspirators or supporters of criminal activities, and victims may file civil lawsuits for damages.
The government urges all citizens to join forces in combating cybercrime. If anyone encounters suspicious behavior or falls victim to online scams, they should immediately report the incident to the hotline 1441 for prompt account suspension.
Fake news and all types of cybercrimes can also be reported via hotline 1111, Line ID: @antifakenewscenter, or the website “antifakenewscenter.com.” (NNT)
