TRABAHO Partylist (No. 106 in the ballot) has called on government agencies, financial institutions, and tech companies to take immediate and coordinated action to protect workers and their hard-earned money from increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.
According to TransUnion’s Omnichannel Fraud Report, the Philippines ranked second as the country with the highest digital fraud rate globally in 2024
In addition, the Philippines recorded a digital fraud rate of 13.4%, significantly above the global average of 5.4%. The report cited phishing, account takeovers, and identity theft as among the most prevalent cybercrimes affecting Filipino consumers.
Trabaho Partylist expressed grave concern over how these digital threats are impacting ordinary Filipino workers.
“Our workers labor tirelessly, often under difficult conditions, only to have their hard-earned income vanish due to cybercriminals. This is unacceptable,” said spokesperson Atty. Mitchell-David L. Espiritu.
“Worse, victims were made to work for online tasks and were lured to deposit thousands of pesos before they found out they were defrauded,” cited Espiritu.
As a solution, the group proposed that the government and private sectors, especially the financial institutions, roll out mainstream literacy programs through daily text blasts, free tv commercials, and community-based seminars.
These initiatives would focus on teaching users how to identify phishing schemes and fake websites, educating workers on how to securely use online financial platforms, and raising awareness about multi-factor authentication and strong password habits.
“We acknowledge existing efforts to spread awareness like email advisories from banks, but given the increasing cases of digital fraud, there is a need to do more to protect workers’ hard-earned money,” the spokesperson added.
Trabaho Partylist also called for a congressional probe on digital fraud to identify legislative measures that can bridge the current gaps in cybersecurity awareness and protection. PR
