The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) on Monday warned the public against suspicious online lending platforms, as it noted that it has received 599 reports of Filipinos who were harassed by such apps since January this year.
In Oscar Oida’s report in “24 Oras” on Monday, “Mara” said she decided to borrow money via an online lending app to cover expenses for the Christmas holidays and for the treatment of her youngest child who got sick.
“It does not have many requirements, so I was enticed to apply. It also promised that it doesn’t harass borrowers,” she said in Filipino.
Unfortunately, “Mara” received only P1,400 out of the P2,200 she supposedly borrowed because of several fees.
Although she was given 45 days to pay it back, she experienced harassment a week after she borrowed the amount.
“They were reaching out to my relatives and friends, and called me a ‘scammer,’” she said.
“They called everyone in my contact list and threatened them that they will have to pay on my behalf if I don’t pay my debt.”
“Mara” was traumatized by the harassment, until it reached the point that she could no longer leave her house.
“I kept crying at home because my husband and I were so stressed. It came to a point that I cannot work properly,” she said.
The CICC warned that suspicious lending platforms could suddenly appear on social media feeds and that clicking it, even accidentally, would enable the app to access your social media account.
“Then when you click it and select an amount, it turns out you’ve already taken out a loan… When you click, it authorizes them to share your Facebook details. So, I have to talk to the social media platforms and tell them that this ‘auto-acceptance’ feature needs to be removed,” said CICC Executive Director Aboy Paraiso.
The agency also launched its “Fast Cash: Mag-Ingat sa Scam” campaign, where victims can report harassment by online lending applications through hotline 1326.
How can one spot ‘red flags’ in money lending apps?
The CICC cautioned against clicking advertisements of online lending platforms, which will automatically bring you to their websites instead of the mobile application.
“This is because these applications have already undergone a vetting process by the app stores,” Paraiso said.
One should also start getting suspicious if the online lending application seems to be hurrying you into making a decision about borrowing money.
The CICC added that many online lending scams are based in other countries, but they have personnel here in the Philippines.
“Because you are part of a syndicate, that warrants for syndicated estafa and it’s non-bailable. Just try us,” Paraiso said. — Vince Angelo Ferreras/JMA, GMA Integrated News
