These types of crimes are costing U.S. citizens $10 billion in losses per year, federal officials said.
Under the terms of the MoU, each will conduct parallel investigation into common targets, share information targeting of organized crime syndicates, discuss which jurisdictions to bring specific cases of common interest, and generally prioritize cases on this threat to achieve mutual results.
The Scam Center Strike Force officially launched by Pirro in November 2025 to address the growing threat posed by Chinese organized crime syndicates operating scam centers primarily in Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, the Strike Force targets cryptocurrency investment fraud, cyber-enabled fraud, human trafficking, and money laundering operations that have cost American victims billions of dollars.
Crime Numbers Up
According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), cyber-enabled fraud schemes were responsible for almost 85 percent of all losses reported to IC3 in 2025. Within that category, CIF schemes continue to grow, and the IC3 calculated the reported losses from CIF scams rose, from $4.57 billion in 2023, to $8.65 billion in 2025, an increase of 89 percent. Moreover, these figures, largely based on losses reported by victims, likely significantly under-represent the true loss amounts incurred by Americans, since most fraud victims do not report to IC3, if at all.
Founded by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, the Strike Force ended up joined in its work by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service, Justice Department’s Criminal Division, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, IRS Criminal Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations-DC. Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Districts of Alaska, Rhode Island, Hawaii, and Western Washington joined in as well.
The Strike Force works in collaboration with other agencies, including the Treasury and State Departments. The Strike Force works in strategic partnership with private industry and calls on all U.S. businesses to take more proactive steps to protect users from scam operations.