TL;DR: According to a September 30, 2026 FOX 10 Phoenix report, the FBI is targeting large scam compounds in Southeast Asia and the Middle East through Operation Blackout. An August 2026 raid in Cambodia searched 28 buildings and recovered 113 hard drives. The domestic Operation Level Up has contacted 10,406 potential crypto investment scam victims.
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What was reported
A report published September 30, 2026 by FOX 10 Phoenix describes the FBI's effort against organized scam networks. According to the report, these networks run from large compounds in Southeast Asia and the Middle East and use trafficked workers who are forced into labor.
Operation Blackout, as described, works through overseas raids and asset seizures, disruption of criminal communications, rescue of workers and the return of funds to victims. The report says an August 2026 raid at Cambodia's O'Smach Resort compound, about 200 acres, searched 28 buildings and recovered 113 hard drives, 15 computers and 35 boxes of evidence.
The domestic side: Operation Level Up
The report says Operation Level Up, run with the Secret Service, has contacted 10,406 potential victims of crypto investment scams. It credits the effort with preventing about $660 million in losses and with seizing or freezing $122 million in cryptocurrency.
Seniors are described as the majority of victims, reached through social media, calls, texts and Telegram. We are reporting these figures as attributed to the article and have not independently verified them.
Red flags
- A stranger who builds a friendship or romance by text or social media, then steers you toward an investment platform.
- Pressure to move to Telegram or another private app.
- A trading site that shows big gains but blocks withdrawals or asks for more fees.
Read more in romance investment (pig butchering) scams, investment and trading app scam recovery and dating and romance scam red flags.
What to do and where to report
Stop sending money, keep screenshots and wallet addresses, and report quickly at FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), because funds can sometimes be frozen when action is fast. Never pay a so-called recovery service; realistic expectations for crypto scam recovery sets out realistic expectations, and crypto scam statistics for 2026 gives the wider numbers.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Operation Blackout?
According to FOX 10, it is an FBI effort against scam compounds overseas, using raids, asset seizures, communications disruption, worker rescues and returns of funds to victims.
What is Operation Level Up?
The report describes it as a domestic effort with the Secret Service that has contacted 10,406 potential victims of crypto investment scams.
Who are the main victims?
The report says seniors are the majority of victims, reached through social media, calls, texts and Telegram.
Where should I report a crypto investment scam?
Report it at ic3.gov as soon as possible, since early reports give investigators a better chance of freezing funds.
Sources
- FOX 10 Phoenix: Inside Operation Blackout, global scam cities targeting your parents' life savings (Sep 30, 2026)
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
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