'That Guy's Voice' Targeted People in Their 20s and 30s... Vietnam-Based Phishing Ring Swindled 8.1 Billion Won

Arrest 54 Members of Phishing Ring Impersonating Public Institutions
Isolated Victims in Lodging Establishments to Steal Cash
Largest Seizure in Case Targeting an Overseas-Based Phishing Ring

In an international operation coordinated with Vietnamese authorities, police arrested more than 50 members of a phishing ring that impersonated public institutions. They also seized the largest haul of evidence in a case involving the arrest of a phishing organization based overseas.

On October 29, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Metropolitan Investigation Unit said it had arrested 54 people, including suspects A and B, alleged leaders of the corporate-style phishing ring “Daedong Dangyeol,” which operated out of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Of those arrested, 37 have been detained.

From July 2025 through January 2026, the group defrauded 110 victims of 8.1 billion won by impersonating government officials, including court clerks, prosecutors and Financial Supervisory Service employees. They told victims, “You have been implicated in a crime and need to be questioned. We will place you under temporary protection.”

The criminal group “Daedong Dangyeol” was formed in District 7 of Ho Chi Minh City by a Chinese ringleader and Korean ringleaders A and B. The group recruited lower-level members through online ads, local networks of seniors and juniors, and labor recruiters.

After assigning each member a role to impersonate, the group isolated victims in lodging establishments and cut them off from contact with others. The members tricked victims into withdrawing cash or purchasing cryptocurrency by falsely telling them they were implicated in crimes.

Among the 110 victims, 89% were young people in their 20s and 30s who had recently entered the workforce. Victimization lasted from as little as six to seven hours to as long as two months.

Items seized following the arrest of the Vietnam-based phishing group “Daedong Dangyeol.” Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency

The police investigation began in January 2026, when Vietnamese police discovered 29 South Koreans engaged in criminal activity at an office in District 7 during an administrative inspection and notified the Korean Embassy.

Starting in April 2026, police conducted a joint investigation with Ho Chi Minh City police and Vietnamese consular officials. Over two months from August 2026, they repatriated and detained 25 key suspects from among the 29 held at an immigration detention center, in eight separate operations.

Police also arrested 29 other members, including those who evaded the crackdown and fled to South Korea via Southeast and Central Asia, as well as members who had already been detained by other police agencies.

By age, 57% (31 people) of all the members arrested in this operation were in their 30s, the largest group. Another 24% (13 people) were in their 20s, and 19% (10 people) were in their 40s, meaning most were relatively young.

The evidence seized in this operation was the largest haul in a case involving the arrest of a phishing organization based overseas. It included scripts for the scams, some of the victims’ database records, 117 mobile phones, 19 laptops, two desktop computer towers, one tablet and 40 headsets.

Police said, “Voice phishing crimes continue to occur in which perpetrators impersonate public institutions such as courts, prosecutors’ offices and the Financial Supervisory Service, demand personal and financial information, or defraud victims of money.”

They added, “Phishing organizations impersonate the names and titles of government agencies and carry out crimes using carefully prepared scripts,” and urged the public to “take care to avoid falling victim to phishing.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.