Scam Watch Pilipinas is asking people to quickly report any hacked Facebook accounts. This advice comes after a couple lost nearly ₱1.2 million due to scammers who used information from their social media.
The scammers tricked a phone company into thinking the couple had lost their phone and got an eSIM card. They managed to do this by using copies of the couple’s IDs, which they had found on Facebook Messenger. By taking control of the couple’s mobile number, the scammers accessed their banking details without permission.
Initially, unauthorized transactions included transfers of ₱4,000 and ₱15,000 from the couple’s BDO bank account. Later, they took out ₱210,000 from their EastWest Bank account. The biggest loss was a fraudulent charge of ₱942,000 on their EastWest Bank credit card.
Scam Watch Pilipinas warns that when Facebook accounts are hacked, it can lead to serious security issues. Scammers can use these accounts to gather personal information, steal identities, and commit financial crimes.
To fight against such scams, the group advises everyone to report hacked Facebook accounts and other online frauds to the Inter-Agency Response Center (I-ARC) hotline at 1326. This free hotline is available 24/7, including on holidays, and is run by the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC), which is part of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).
Besides calling the hotline, people can also report issues through the CICC’s Facebook page, which makes it easier for victims and witnesses of cybercrimes to submit their complaints. This initiative helps streamline the reporting process and improves the government’s response to cyber threats.
The CICC works with various agencies like the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), the National Privacy Commission (NPC), the Philippine National Police (PNP), and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to fight against cybercrimes. This teamwork highlights the need for the public to stay alert and report issues quickly to protect personal information and avoid online scams.
For more information and updates on staying safe online, follow Scam Watch Pilipinas and the CICC on their official social media pages.
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