The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday, Dec. 9, warned the public against online scammers whose activities were reported to be on the rise this Christmas season.

“We just got a report that in the last few months there has been an uptick of scamming,” DOJ Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV told journalists. 

Thus, Clavano said the public should be “more circumspect, be more careful and cautious doon sa mga kinakausap nila sa kahit ano mang social media platform o messaging platform (with whom they talk to through any social media or messaging platforms),” Clavano said. 

“So, we encourage everyone to look deeper kung sino talaga ang kausap n’yo (who you are really talking to),” he advised.

He pointed out that “maraming tao nakatutok sa kanilang cellphone lalo na pasko na (many people are focused on their mobile phone especially this Christmas).”

“Tayong mga Filipino avid users tayo ng social media. Kaya very vulnerable talaga ang Filipino dito sa mga ganitong klaseng scam (Filipinos are avid users of social media. So Filipinos are vulnerable to such scams),” he said.

He urged the public to report to the DOJ’s Office of Cybercrime any instance of online scamming.

He cited the case of ABS-CBN host Migs Bustos who went to the DOJ on Monday, Dec. 9,  to request for an investigation against online scammers pretending to be the media personality.

“It has been very alarming already. They use my face, my wife’s face, my family’s images, even my friends in my circle. So it’s about time to do something about it,” said Bustos.

Clavano learned that a person from Orlando, Florida lost $2,000 after falling victim to the scammer using the name of Bustos.

“Alam natin ngayong Pasko marami ang nangangailangan and we hope that tamang paraan lang ‘yung masusunod natin sa paghahanap ng pera (we all know that this Christmas there are many people in need and we hope they all earn money through the right means),” he said.