With the rise in online scam cases in the country, Internet users need to be more careful with their online activities. According to the Philippine National Police’s Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG), there was a significant rise in 2016 until the beginning of this year. The figure is higher than records from previous years.
According to ACG, victims of online buying and selling scams, paluwagan, investment, pyramid scams and other forms of online fraud have filed complaints with the agency. The most common cases are online libel, online threat, antiphoto and antivideo voyeurism, computer-related identity theft and hacking. PNP-ACG is also investigating cases of unjust vexation, sextortion, automated teller machine and credit-card fraud, child abuse, illegal access, child pornography and violations of the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children (VAWC) Act of 2004 (Republic Act 9269).
With so many people using the Internet these days, it pays for us to know how we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from cybercrime. Here are some basic tips to consider.
Keep hard-to-crack passwords: At least eight characters; a combination of numbers, letters and symbols; and unrelated to you. And don’t give your password to anyone.
Only visit sites you trust. If you go to hacker sites, adult web sites and the like, you are exposing yourself to possible cyber attacks.
Ignore pop-ups. Any e-mail or pop-up window that asks for your username or password is suspect. If you’re unsure, call the company to verify the message. Pop-ups that offer things like site surveys should be ignored.
If you’re unsure, don’t click. Sometimes hackers would convince their would-be victims to click on a link or open an attachment. Don’t do it. And if someone wants to connect with you on Facebook or LinkedIn, for example, and you don’t know this person, the best thing to do is ignore. Do not engage in online conversations with strangers. It’s the same rule that applies offline.
If you need to shop online, do so on secure sites only. “Before entering your card details, make sure that the locked padlock or unbroken key symbol is showing on your browser.” A secure connection’s URL would begin with “https” rather than http. If a web site changes back to “http” once you have logged on, it’s a red flag.
Double-check your FB security settings. Don’t post your home address, phone number, date of birth and any information that may be used to fake your identity. Privacy settings must be for “friends” only. Don’t publish personal data for the public and be careful about the things you post about yourself and your loved ones: location, habits, plans, etc.
Use a different e-mail account for each site you visit. If a hacker manages to get through one account, at least he won’t have access to the other places. Use one e-mail account for your bank account, another for shopping and a different one for your social networks.
Don’t use public Wi-fi to do online banking. Somebody might intercept your data while you are doing your transaction because Wi-fi hot spots usually do not encrypt information.
These are just some of the basic ways to protect yourself from online crimes or attacks. In the same way that we are careful whenever we go out into the streets, we should also exercise the same caution whenever we are on the Internet. One cannot be too careful these days, so it’s always better to err on the side of caution.
The PNP-ACG encourages the public to report incidents of cybercrime through www.pnpacg.ph, or through their hotline number 723-0401 local 5313, or e-mail address pnp.anticybercrimegroup@gmail.com.
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WE remember Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon-Chua on his first death anniversary on March 11. He was the Philippine ambassador to Lao PDR under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s term, a reserved colonel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and a philanthropist. May our Lord grant his soul eternal rest.