There’s an old trick in the con artist’s handbook: promise the world, and take everything. It’s a scam as old as time, but somehow, Filipinos continue to fall for it — especially when it involves the glittering mirage of overseas jobs with absurdly high salaries. The latest case? Dozens of Filipinos lured to Cambodia with the promise of customer service jobs, only to find themselves locked up in a scam hub, forced to defraud foreigners for their captors’ gain.

Thankfully, three of them had the presence of mind — and the sheer guts — to escape. They made it to a safehouse, where agents from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) swooped in and brought them home. It was a rescue mission straight out of an action thriller. Four NBI operatives were deployed to Cambodia, plucked the victims from hiding, and escorted them back to the Philippines. You’d almost expect a dramatic airport reunion scene, complete with tearful embraces and relieved families.

But here’s the problem: The victims say around 40 more Filipinos are still trapped in that compound, being forced to work as online scammers. Let that sink in. Forty Filipinos, in a foreign country, held against their will, under the control of syndicates that have turned human trafficking into an international enterprise.

Illegal recruitment and human trafficking have plagued the Philippines for decades. The government, through agencies like the NBI, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), and the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), has worked to combat it, but the criminals always seem to be one step ahead. They exploit social media, prey on economic desperation, and use the porous backdoor of the Philippines — Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga and Palawan — to sneak people out undetected.

It’s not like we haven’t seen this before. Filipinos have been trafficked to Myanmar, Laos and the United Arab Emirates under similar false pretenses. The stories are depressingly familiar: jobseekers promised easy money, only to find themselves in modern-day slavery. Some are forced into online fraud operations, others into sex work. And the worst part? By the time they realize they’ve been duped, their passports had been confiscated, and they’re trapped.

The fact that the NBI led by Director Jaime Santiago sent agents to Cambodia shows an unprecedented level of commitment. Usually, we hear about repatriations, diplomatic démarches, or sternly worded press statements. But this time, our agents actually went in and extracted our people. That’s gutsy. That’s what we need more of.

Still, three lives saved is just a fraction of the problem. There are at least 40 more Filipinos in that scam compound, and who knows how many more elsewhere. If the government is serious about fighting human trafficking, it needs to double down. The DFA and DMW should be knocking on Cambodia’s door, demanding cooperation. If there’s credible intelligence on where these Filipinos are being held, then a high-level diplomatic mission should be on the next flight to Phnom Penh.

Director Santiago has issued a warning — don’t fall for these too-good-to-be-true job offers. That’s solid advice, but let’s be real — desperation makes people ignore red flags. If you’re struggling to feed your family and someone waves a $1,000-a-month job in front of you, skepticism takes a backseat.

What we need is a stronger crackdown on illegal recruiters, both online and offline. Facebook groups and Telegram channels advertising these fake jobs should be monitored and shut down. And let’s not forget the small-time fixers in the provinces — the ones who arrange backdoor exits for a fee. They should be hunted down, charged, and made an example of.

Globally, human trafficking remains a billion-dollar industry, and the Philippines is both a source and a transit point. Our country has made progress — just last year, the US State Department kept us in Tier 1 of its Trafficking in Persons report, meaning we’re meeting the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking. But if cases like this continue to emerge, that status is at risk.

For the families of those 40 trapped Filipinos, rankings mean nothing. What matters is getting their loved ones back. And that means the government has no time to waste. The scam syndicates are getting bolder. It’s time we got tougher.