Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) continues to remind the public to remain vigilant and cautious in response to the surge in spoofing scams targeting banking customers.
Spoofing scams, orchestrated by sophisticated cybercriminals, mimic legitimate communication from the bank to deceive unsuspecting victims into disclosing sensitive personal information, including login credentials and banking details.
Jericho Konrad Uy, head of RCBC’s Enterprise Fraud Risk Division, emphasized the gravity of the situation, stressing the need for enhanced awareness and stringent security measures.
This reminder from RCBC came amid a worsening state of scams not only in the Philippines but also across the Asia Pacific region. According to Global Anti-Scam Alliance and Feedzai, approximately 621,872 Singaporeans aged over 18 have fallen victim to scams last year, resulting in a total loss of $2.5 billion, equivalent to 0.5 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Earlier, too, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission reported losses to spoofing scams of over $6.3 million as of March this year, and billions more in 2022.
Despite efforts by telcos to filter phishing links in SMS messages, scams are still proliferating on social media and messaging apps.
To deal with the ever-changing environment of cyber threats and fraud, RCBC is constantly on the lookout for better ways to do things and new security solutions.
“We also work closely with telcos, other banks, and government agencies. This close collaboration helps us report scams efficiently and try to recover money back for our customers,” Uy said.
Carlos Tengkiat, RCBC Chief Information Security Officer, said RCBC also utilizes threat intelligence and social media monitoring, which allows the bank to respond to different scams promptly.
“We have proactively hardened our mobile and web applications, and the inclusion of procedures and technical controls ensures the prevention and reduction of successful frauds and scams,” he further said.
