A cryptic message promising a remote job opportunity sends Alex, an amateur detective into the depths of the internet, where everything’s a game of smoke and mirrors.

Balkan Watchers 2024

Ana, who’s Alex’s girlfriend, has agreed to be kept in the dark about Alex’s weird new obsession. She only knows Alex had a “job”. Now, finally, Alex sits Ana down to unravel the saga. The job was simple: liking YouTube and Facebook videos for cash. The pay was enticing, and he was introduced into the community and made friends. But something felt off. The company was increasingly opaque, and the managers were behaving erratically. Suddenly, it all collapsed. As it turned out, it was all a very sophisticated digital-first scam that extracted upwards of 500.000 Euros from victims. And it was not an isolated incident. Alex unearthed a network of such scams, some of which target specific countries, others cast even wider nets. He’s been talking to victims from all around Europe, but especially the Balkans, and has tried to understand how and why these scams are so effective. People have lost their life savings, their houses, and their dignity. But it all still feels so far away until a new flavor of scams emerges. In this ever-evolving landscape of deceit, Ana and Alex confront the heavy task of safeguarding against all these types of fraud.