Since Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) were banned beginning July last year by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., recruiters have become more brazen in luring Filipinos into POGO-related jobs and scams abroad, according to Bureau of Immigration (BI) spokesperson Dana Sandoval.

In an interview on DAILY TRIBUNE’s digital show Usapang OFW on 20 February, Sandoval noted that POGOs and scam outfits had expanded to different Asian countries.

This followed multiple cases of Filipinos being repatriated after they were promised jobs as customer sales representatives, only to end up working in scam hubs, particularly for dating apps that trick Western men into investing in fake businesses.

“These POGO operations have many bases in different Asian countries. We’ve even received intelligence reports that they are attempting to establish operations in the Middle East,” Sandoval said.

The BI spokesperson added that recruiters often entice Filipino jobseekers with promising offers, with the most recent job postings offering a P50,000 monthly salary with free food, lodging and travel.

There are commonly two modes of recruitment that the BI has observed among Filipinos intercepted and repatriated.

The majority are recruited through social media posts on Facebook, where the posts typically bear headings such as “POGO work,” “POGO hiring,” and “POGO jobs abroad.”

“There are Facebook groups spreading these job offers, inviting applicants to work as customer sales representatives in various Asian countries,” Sandoval said.

To minimize such cases, the BI is coordinating with Facebook’s law enforcement division to take down the accounts and pages used for illegal hiring.

However, recruiters often evade detection by using vague job descriptions on Facebook and other messaging applications like Telegram to discuss job details.

Another recruitment method occurs within Philippine call centers, where a middleman or recruiter directly offers employees job opportunities overseas.