More than half of Filipinos have been victims of online scams, according to a new study by the GSMA, a global organization for mobile network operators.
The report revealed that 52% of adults in the country have been scammed at least once. This figure is seven points higher than the Southeast Asian average, which highlights the scale of the problem in the Philippines.
According to the study, scams are not only widespread but also growing quickly. Eight percent of respondents said they were scammed in the past year alone, one of the fastest increases in the region.
About 68% of the victims lost money, with 11% saying their losses were significant. Beyond financial damage, 45% reported emotional stress, while 28% said they spent considerable time fixing the problems caused by scams.
Public concern is high, with 96% of Filipinos worried about being scammed or hacked. Social media platforms have now overtaken text messages and phone calls as the most common channel used by fraudsters to target people.
In response, the GSMA and local telecom operators are launching new initiatives to strengthen fraud detection. A pilot program will allow telecom companies to share anonymized data with banks and tech firms to improve scam prevention systems.
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Local carriers are also rolling out new authentication services designed to reduce risks from SIM swaps and fake accounts.
