Cybercrime new menace in Philippines, officials say

Manila: Cybercriminals are now at the top of criminals’ list in the Philippines, because they do almost all criminal activities known in the world with the aid of the Internet, officials said on Wednesday during the Anti-Cybercrime Summit at the headquarters of the Philippine National Police in Camp Crame, suburban Quezon City.

The increasing number of cybercrime cases in the Philippines is due to the rising number of Internet users in the country. The Philippines because it is now the world’s top 17th Internet user, said Senior Superintendent Gilbert Sosa, head of the Philippine National Police’s Anti Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG).

Cybecriminals have added new Internet-based vices: ATM fraud, cyberpornography, harassment, human trafficking, identity theft, and threats, said Sosa.

Calling on Internet users not to be too confessional, open, and trusting of data revealed on the cyberspace, Sosa said that cybercriminals are IT experts on the prowl for victims through blogs, chats, message boards, networks, and websites.

The ACG has recorded 2,778 crimes done through the Internet from 2003 to 2012. There were 601 cases with 2,242 digital evidences presented in these cases in 2013, said Sosa.

Not to be outdone, the PNP has made changes to avert modern day criminals.

“We will have anti-cybercrime desks in all police stations,” said Sosa, adding that the expansion of the exposure of his office is a must, which could be done with the recruitment and training of more personnel.

With the help of anti-terrorism assistance programmes from other countries led by the United States, the police have acquired equipment, laboratories nationwide, other technical support, and training services, said Sosa,

“We are ready to address the frontier of the cybercriminals,” said Sosa whose office has become one of two of the police’s special divisions to address crime starting last year.

Also held was the country’s first Anti-Cybercrime Summit at the police Camp Crame headquarters in suburban Quezon City.

The police’s other anti crime independent unit is the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG).

Hopefully, with the birthing of the anti-cybercrime policemen nationwide, the ratio of nine out of 10 Filipinos who are victims of cybercriminals will be lowered, said PNP chief director general Alan Purisima.

Fighting cybercrime offenses has intensified in the Philippine after the Supreme Court decided last February 18 to lift a temporary restraining order it issued last October 9, for the implementation of the law.

This was done after the justice department allowed the dropping of the law’s provision against online libel.

To address growing cybercrime offenses, Philippine Congress approved the Cybercrime Prevention Act in 2012.