The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has been watching closely phishing activities which have reportedly victimized a number of teachers, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said on Tuesday, Jan. 25.
“The NBI is already looking into phishing of bank accounts on a broader scale, but I am minded to issue a separate directive to the NBI in the case of the teacher victims,” Guevarra said.
The DOJ’s Office of Cybercrime (DOJ-OOC) has described phishing, along with vishing and smishing, as “forms of cybercrimes in which the perpetrator posing as a legitimate institution, such as a bank, online payment site, or an online commerce site, devises a message through electronic, phone call, or text message” with the objective “of luring individuals into providing sensitive data, such as personally identifiable information, banking and credit card details, and usernames and passwords.”
Last Monday, Jan. 24, the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) reported that a number of teachers with deposits at the bank have fallen victims to phishing.
LBP said that based on its initial investigation, the devices of the teachers were hacked via phishing which compromised their personal information.”
“The bank has already reached out to the affected customers and is working on the resolution of these isolated cases at the soonest possible time,” the bank said in a statement.
It reminded its depositors: “Refrain from opening suspicious emails, links and attachments, and sharing your account and personal information. Official Landbank representatives will never ask for the critical financial information of customers,”
The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition had reported that some teachers lost between P26,000 and P121,000 each from their Landbank accounts due to hacking.