National Privacy Commission (NPC) on the rise of SMS Scams

𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐍𝐏𝐂) 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐌𝐒 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐬

The National Privacy Commission (NPC) has called a meeting of data privacy officers from telecom firms to discuss methods to stop a rising SMS scam that is affecting Filipino customers.

Thousands of text messages from unknown numbers offering nonexistent employment to unwary victims have sparked outrage in recent days.

Smishing is a cybersecurity assault carried out using mobile text messaging in which victims are duped into providing personal information that the perpetrators use to commit fraud, which is mainly money theft.

In today's NPC meeting, data privacy officials from e-commerce sites like as Lazada and Shopee, as well as banks, will be present.

To protect customers, the NPC will also urge telcos to establish a caller identification verification system similar to that used in the United States.

This is viewed as a vetting procedure for postpaid mobile phone consumers, allowing reputable telemarketers to continue their business.

The National Police Commission (NPC) said the smishing operations plaguing Metro Manila were most likely carried out by a “global crime syndicate, not by a group that has gained unauthorized access to contact-tracing forms.”

Earlier allegations that the personal data and contact information in the hands of scammers and spammers came from health forms submitted as part of the pandemic's contact-tracing procedures were denied by Liboro.

Sen. Joel Villanueva stated that any measures proposed by the NPC must address the growing complaints of mobile phone subscribers about unwanted text messages, while Congress worked on passing a bill requiring mobile service carriers to create a registry of subscribers who do not want to receive promotional SMS.

He did clarify, however, that any action taken by the NPC would be administrative in nature and would require additional government legislation and restriction.

While Congress works on the law, Villanueva believes the government should pursue smugglers of banned text blast machines, which are portal devices capable of sending 100,000 texts per hour.

The device, according to Villanueva, works by tapping nearby cell towers or acting as a portable cell site that can broadcast but not receive messages in bulk.

De Lima filed Senate Resolution No. 934 in October, demanding Congress to examine the purported sale of text blast devices for partisan political purposes on Facebook, Lazada, and Shopee.

De Lima emphasized the importance of strengthening the Free Mobile Disaster Alerts Act and prohibiting the use of text blast machines that are not meant for emergency use in the resolution.

PLDT Inc. and its mobile unit, Smart Communications Inc., said that spam messages are now being blocked on their network.

Smart said in a statement on Tuesday that it was collaborating with the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), the National Communications Commission (NPC), and the Department of Trade and Industry to “investigate and stop the proliferation of SMS spam-based scam and fraud.”

Angel Redoble, PLDT and Smart's chief information and security officer, claimed the business had effectively blacklisted hundreds of cellphone numbers as well as roughly 40 domains and IP addresses linked to the fraud.

From October 21 to November 20, PLDT-Smart reported another 400 to 500 mobile numbers linked to SMS hoaxes and scams were blacklisted every day.

Meanwhile, Redoble has advised consumers to be extremely cautious and to never give personal information with strangers, no matter how appealing the offer may appear.

Subscribers were advised to avoid messages from unknown senders and not to give any personal information, according to the telco giant.

They can also use the built-in blocking option in their SMS app.

Mobile customers who receive these suspicious and unwanted SMS can report the scammers and their phone numbers to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) at https://ntc.gov.ph/complaint.

The NTC may then ask Smart to cut the cybercriminals' numbers after due process, according to the company.