Be cyber safe; fight digital fraud

EDITORIAL

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Suspected fraud rate affecting digital transactions of Filipinos was at 13.4 percent in 2024, placing the Philippines at an alarming second place behind India (19 percent) and ahead of the Dominican Republic (10.9 percent).

To underscore this, global risk information provider TransUnion reported that over seven in every 10 or 74 percent of Filipinos said they had been targeted by fraudsters through email, online, phone call, or text messaging between November and December 2024. This is much higher than the 53 percent across 18 countries and regions surveyed. In the same survey period, 34 percent of Filipinos claimed to have lost money due to any of the above schemes, higher than the 29 percent global rate.

This unsettling development poses a serious threat not only to our national security and economy but to the daily lives of millions of Filipinos. While we continue embracing digital transformation—from e-commerce and digital banking to online government services—we must also confront its dark side: the rise in cybercrime.