How do you run a scam operation? 

Perks, recruitment, outsourcing and a monthly landscaping budget—this is Scam Inc.

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Who are the scammers?

They're not who you think.

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You wouldn’t fall for a scam—would you?

A small town in Kansas is left reeling after one of its best and brightest gets sucked in.

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A sophisticated, predatory, multi-billion dollar industry is emerging from the shadows. It already rivals the size of the illicit drug trade. And it’s about to get bigger and much more powerful. 

The Economist’s Sue-Lin Wong follows a trail that starts with the collapse of a bank in rural Kansas to uncover a global, underground scam economy built around human trafficking, corruption and money laundering. Can it be stopped?

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