November 08, 2023

Interior and Local Secretary Benhur Abalos on Tuesday (November 7) revealed that around 8,000 online scam victims in the country have already lost some P155 million to various con artists employing all sorts of fraudulent schemes from January to August this year./p>

Abalos said the data came from the Philippine National Police – Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG), which has been waging a relentless war against online scammers who appear to be always innovating when pulling off their dirty tricks.

He made the report during the signing of a memorandum of agreement between him and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairperson Emilio Aquino on behalf of their respective agencies.

The MOA is designed to support the SEC’s campaign against financial scams, particularly the agency’s Anti-Scam and Illegal Taking of Investments Group (ASTIG).

“This partnership is very timely as we need to educate the public about the fast-growing menace of investment frauds,” Abalos said.

The SEC and DILG will collaborate to equip Filipinos with the knowledge of financial principles and on avoiding the traps and techniques of investment scams.

These efforts will lead to early reporting and detection of any illegal financial schemes.

According to Aquino, the DILG, as overseer of local government operations, serves as the SEC’s “best link to investor education and protection” at the grassroots level.

“I am confident that the DILG, as purveyor of excellence in local governance, will be a key driving force to the network’s greater success,” he said.

Original Article at: https://dilg.gov.ph/news/Abalos-Online-scam-artists-rake-in-P155-M-in-8-months/NC-2023-1231