Tags: Internet, Technology Industry
By Alexander Villafania
PASIG CITY, METRO MANILA – More Filipinos are falling as victims to online criminal activities and other malicious attacks every year, according to a new “cybercrime” report on the Philippines by security software firm Symantec.
The report, based on an online survey of 556 adults, said 87 percent of Filipinos have fallen to a variety of attacks, which include malware (virus and Trojan horse) invasion, online or phishing scams, and “sexual predation”.
Another area of attack is through social networking services, particularly Facebook, which so far has at least 16 million users in the Philippines.
Effendy Ibrahim, head of Symantec Asia’s Internet Safety Advocate and Consumer Business division, said many victims exhibit apathy regarding protecting themselves when going online.
This led him to describe the growing cybercrime problem in the Philippines as a “silent epidemic.”
Some practices that are considered unethical, such as illegally downloading movies and music, are among the basis for the attacks. Cybercriminals capitalize on these unethical online practices, using social engineering to make Internet users believe they are in legitimate website.
In truth, the sites are embedding malicious applications into the would-be victim’s PC, giving cybercriminals free access to personal information.
But despite these threats, people in the Symantec survey still believe that they are morally obligated to act based on their wants. Thirty-four percent of those surveyed said it is acceptable to download music and movies without paying for them. Another 22 percent insist it is acceptable to review the web browser history of another person. The same number of people also thinks that using an unsecured WiFi access point is legal.
“Sadly, it is these moral issues that cybercriminals are using against their intended victims. If people knew want they were getting into, they would lessen the chances of them becoming victims of cybercriminals,” Ibrahim said.
As for financial concerns, Ibrahim said stolen personal or business data could lead catastrophic losses. Their own global review showed that losses to cybercriminals reach as much as US$334 for 28 days on an average.
“In the Philippines, the average loss for 28 days of undetected attacks is US$$223 or P12,203. Those who are attacked would not know how much they are losing unless they find out that their confidential information is being used,” Ibrahim said.
The Symantec report also indicated another problem faced by the Philippine law enforcement system and that is the lack of legislation that prosecutes alleged cybercriminals. The report showed that 73 percent of those surveyed said they do not expect cybercriminals to be brought to justice.
This issue is not rebuffed by law enforcement agencies. An NBI report presented during the National Cyber Defense Capability Conference just last March indicated that the number of cybercrimes recorded were only 30 as of 2005. No new updates were released until 2010 and no convictions have also been reported.
Martini Cruz, a former member of the defunct Anti-fraud and Computer Crimes Division of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), who admitted that the proper mechanisms for detecting, monitoring, and prosecuting cybercrimes in the Philippines are not in place.
He said that apart from the E-Commerce Act of 2000, no law pertaining to the Internet has been passed in the Philippines. The cybercrime bill and and data privacy law have been pushed by the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) for years but have been denied passage time and again.
“Without those laws, the government would be unable to stem this worsening problem. More Filipinos could fall victims,” Cruz said.
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Hi good evening, Im also working on a research paper about cybercrime here in Philippines. would you give me more topic about cyber crime here and the effects? and give me some citation about cybercrimes occcur in PH. Im also student of JOSE RIZAL UNIVERSITY here in MANDALUYONG CITY..hoping for your quick response.. .. this is my email add joenamae_alvarez79, thank you and more power po.
Hello! I am a student of Public Administration from NCPAG in UP Diliman. My groupmates and I are currently writing a Policy Issue Paper about cybercrime in the Philippines for our Policy Analysis class. Would you mind being of help to us in our research? We do really need your expertise on this matter.
Ah, i see. Well that’s not too tcrkiy at all!”
Hi we are also working on a research paper about cybercrime here in PH. would you give us some time to interview through internet? and give us some citation about cybercrimes occcur in PH. we are students of Notre Dame of Dadiangas University here in General Santos City. hoping for your quick response.. ..by the way sir this is my email add.. . thanks
hi, interesting article, by the way im writing a thesis regarding social networking sites and im looking forward to discuss it to you and also im looking forward to things that you might share to me to aid my research.. i’ve added you in the facebook and soon i’ll contact you through your email.. tnx
@timothy. sure, email me at alexvillafania@gmail.com or lord_alessi@yahoo.com. thanks.
We are working in a research paper about cybercrime in the Ph. would you mind giving us some time to have a short interview with you regarding the matter? btw, we are from a social science class in Mapua. Thank you!
How do I contact you?
My niece has to make a school report about Cybercrime in the Philippines . Do you have time for an interview today or tomorrow?
After a month long research, my 3rd highschool could not find a Philippines expert on cybercrime against children. Hope you find time to accommodate. We live in Merville Paranaque.