Scammers in Asia Used ChatGPT to Target Victims, Says Kenyan Survivor
Duncan Okindo, a 26-year-old Kenyan, says he was lured to Southeast Asia last year with the promise of a customer service role in Thailand. Instead, he spent four months trapped in a scam compound on the Myanmar-Thai border, where he was forced to work under armed guard.
Okindo told Reuters he was recruited by a local agency, only to be abducted on arrival in Bangkok and taken to the notorious KK Park complex. He described the facility as heavily fortified and “like it was meant for war.” Inside, hundreds of people worked in rows of computers, many using artificial intelligence tools to trick victims worldwide.
ChatGPT as a Scam Tool
Okindo said ChatGPT was “the most-used AI tool to help scammers do their thing.” He and others used the free version of the chatbot to create messages convincing enough to deceive Americans into fake cryptocurrency investments, a fraud method known as pig-butchering.
His targets were US real estate agents, whose contact details he gathered from websites such as Zillow. Pretending to be wealthy investors, he approached dozens each week. His bosses demanded he persuade at least two agents daily to deposit money into fraudulent platforms.
The chatbot helped workers sound authentic by generating local phrases, background stories, and quick answers about cryptocurrency or the US housing market. “You need to feel familiar,” he explained. “If you miss any point, the realtor will know you are a scam.”
Harsh Punishments and False Promises
Scripts dictated when to mention property deals or introduce cryptocurrency. Bosses celebrated big “wins” with drumbeats but punished failure with humiliation, beatings, and electric shocks.
Okindo described losing his dignity in the process: “It was reduced to ashes.” He escaped in April when Thai authorities cut power to the compound, forcing his captors to release some workers.
Back in Kenya, he now faces stigma, threats from cartel-linked individuals, and ongoing financial struggles.
A Wider Pattern of Abuse
Anti-trafficking groups confirmed that Okindo was among several Kenyans rescued from scam compounds this year. His story also aligns with accounts from other forced labourers interviewed by Reuters.
Two Burmese men separately described how ChatGPT transformed scams after its public release in 2022. One said the chatbot allowed him to run romance scams at scale, wooing dozens of victims with AI-generated poems and persuasive messages that built trust.
OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, said it actively works to detect and disrupt misuse of its platform. The company noted that its systems are designed to block fraud-related requests, and it investigates and removes violators.
Despite such safeguards, Okindo’s experience shows how scam operations have exploited AI tools to enhance deception, highlighting the dangers of technology in the wrong hands.
with inputs from Reuters