With the popularity of online dating and the prevalence of online interactions, itโs harder to spot the so-called โred flagsโ today than ever before. This is why leading fiber broadband provider Converge teamed up this Safer Internet Month with citizen cyber education organization Scam Watch Pilipinas to outline the doโs and donโts when it comes to finding love online.
โWhen it comes to cyber dating, ika nga #Budol is real. We donโt want to find ourselves in the situation where weโre heart broken and at the same time, โcatfishedโ and scammed out of our hard-earned money,โ warned Eumir Espiritu, Converge AVP and Head of Data Privacy, in his remarks for the #UnMatch webinar, hosted by Converge as part of its Safer Internet campaign.
Given that that situation has become a reality for so many, as attested to by Scam Watch Pilipinas founders Art Samaniego Jr. and Jocel De Guzman, here are some practical tips to avoid getting your heart broken (and your wallet emptied):
๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ต๐๐ด๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ
Education in cybersecurity practice is the core mission of Scam Watch, said Mr. De Guzman, because citizens are simply uninformed about basic โcyber hygieneโ – important security habits meant to protect oneself from a cyber attack. Mr. De Guzman shared four โattitudesโ to take in keeping oneโs guard up in confronting a possible cyber threat : Magdamot, Magduda, Mang-Isnob, and Magsumbong.
๐๐ผ๐ปโ๐ ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐๐๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฑ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป
Your account password is akin to the first lock on your door – itโs the first layer of security you have against cyber criminals, so make sure to make it a strong one, says Art Samaniego Jr. who is also the Manila Bulletin Technology Editor. He recommends 8-14 characters and a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols for maximum security. If these are in combination, itโll take several months before hackers can crack your password.
๐๐๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฐ๐ฎ๐บ๐ – ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐น๐๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐น๐ผ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฐ๐ฎ๐บ๐ – ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฎ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐
Being defrauded or scammed may seem like something that would happen to others but not to you, but actually, the Philippine National Police – Anti Cybercrime Group reports numbers that show cyber crimes happen more often than one thinks. In 2023, they investigated more than 16,000 incidents and the value lost from these scams have amounted to Php 155 million, shared Mr. Espiritu. Being extra vigilant and alert to these ploys is a must, especially with so much of our lives spent online, the Data Privacy head added.
โAs a leading fiber internet provider and actually, as the fastest internet service provider in the Philippines as validated by Ookla, Converge recognizes its responsibility to promote ways to be smart and safe online. Weโve always advocated for a safe internet environment, we donโt want our internet highway to be used by cyber criminals. We want our customers to be safe. And education is key to this,โ said Converge VP and Head of Corporate Communications and Public Relations Jay-Anne Encarnado in her closing remarks.
Filipinos who find themselves victim to online scams may reach out to Scam Watch Pilipinas through https://scamwatchpilipinas.com/ for reporting or call The Inter-Agency Response Center (I-ARC) Hotline 1326 within 24 hours of the crime.
I-ARC is the joint project of Department of Information Communications Technology (DICT), Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC), National Privacy Commission (NPC) and National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to centralize reporting of online scams to the government.