Top countries where Indians were defrauded in 2025: Cambodia, Myanmar, US lead the list

Other countries reporting complaints in 2025 include Germany, Japan, Australia, Canada, Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom

NEW YORK (TIP): Cambodia, Myanmar and the United States emerged as the top three countries where Indian nationals faced cyber threatening and blackmailing in 2025, according to data shared by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in Parliament.

In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said the government had received a sharp spike in complaints from distressed Indian families living abroad, particularly from Southeast Asia, over the past two years.

Official figures show that Cambodia accounted for the highest number of complaints in 2025, with 1,300 cases reported, followed by Myanmar with 1,863 cases and the US with 613 cases. The data highlights a dramatic rise from previous years, indicating the growing scale of cyber fraud rackets and coercive operations targeting Indian nationals overseas.

The trend has been especially pronounced in Cambodia and Myanmar. While Cambodia recorded no complaints in 2021, the numbers rose steadily from 44 in 2022 to 207 in 2023, before surging to 982 in 2024 and 1,300 in 2025. Myanmar, too, witnessed a volatile pattern, with 399 cases in 2022, 83 in 2023, 203 in 2024 and a steep jump to 1,863 cases last year.

Other countries reporting complaints in 2025 include Germany (15), Japan (7), Australia (5), Canada (5), Sri Lanka (50) and the United Kingdom (nil). The figures underline that while the problem is global, it is concentrated in a few high-risk locations.
Responding to concerns over the safety and welfare of Indians abroad, MEA said it has put in place multiple mechanisms to assist distressed nationals. These include the e-Migrate and MADAD portals, Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojana, Pravasi Bharatiya Sahayata Kendras, 24×7 helplines and regular open houses at Indian missions.

The government also highlighted the role of Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF), which operates in all Indian missions and posts abroad. Revised comprehensively in September 2017, ICWF guidelines allow missions to provide means-tested assistance for on-site welfare activities, including legal aid, payment of fines for petty offences, support for distressed women and other emergency interventions.

MEA said these frameworks are aimed at ensuring timely, compassionate and affordable assistance to Indians facing distress overseas, even as complaints related to cyber threatening and blackmailing continue to rise.