New law proposed for quick tech crime recovery in Thailand

A special law to protect victims of technology crimes and expedite their recovery of losses will be introduced by the government, Digital Economy and Society (DES) Minister Prasert Jantararuangtong announced yesterday.

The new legislation aims to address the surge in technology-related crimes and was agreed upon during a recent committee meeting focused on suppressing and preventing these offences.

The committee explored various issues, including the lengthy wait victims endure to reclaim their money despite government officials already freezing the funds. They also discussed the possibility of extending jail terms for buying or selling private data from one to five years, the prevention of illegal money transfers via digital assets, and improving the exchange of information between agencies.

Prasert noted that a subcommittee on legal affairs has been tasked with examining the legal specifics and drafting a bill to address these concerns, which is to be presented to the Cabinet within 30 days.

“Suppressing mule bank accounts and mule SIM cards has seen significant progress. But tackling the culprits and the masterminds in Thailand and overseas isn’t satisfactory. We’ve found some legal obstacles hinder tracing money and returning it to the victims. We need a special law to address this.”

The DES Ministry also updated the public on the authorities’ efforts to curb online crime.

From July 1 to 31, the number of arrests related to online crime reached 2,306, marking a 7.57% reduction compared to the average of the first three months of this year. Arrests linked to online gambling totalled 980, reflecting a 7.89% decrease from the average of the initial three months.

Arrests connected to mule accounts and mule SIM cards stood at 208, showing a 13.33% reduction compared to the first quarter’s average.

In July alone, 16,279 illegal websites were shut down, a sevenfold increase from July of last year, which saw 2,294 closures. Additionally, 6,519 gambling websites were closed in July this year, compared to only 97 in the previous year.

By July 31, 920,694 suspected mule accounts and 71,122 SIM cards used to make over 100 calls per day were suspended. Out of those suspended, only 418 owners had verified their identities, reported Bangkok Post.