Anti-scam watchdog Scam Watch Pilipinas on Friday, February 9, said shame hindered victims of love scams to report.
“Ang problema dito yung mga nala-love scam hindi nila nire-report kasi nahihiya,” Scam Watch Pilipinas co-founder Jocel de Guzman told DZRH in an interview.
Jocel De Guzman, Scam Watch, sa love scam: Ang problema ngayon sa love scam, kasi hindi alam ng mga kababayan natin kung ano ang gagawin. Kasi hindi tayo tinuruan mag-ingat online.#DamdamingBayan#SamaSamaTayoPilipino
— DZRH NEWS (@dzrhnews) February 9, 2024
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The Philippine National Police (PNP) recorded 168 cases of love scams last year, a striking increase from 94 cases in 2022.
According to Scamwatch, love scams involve scammers using romance and dating to extort money from the victims, going so far as manipulating the person that the romantic relationship is bound to flourish.
“Ang nangyayari, problema ngayon ay lahat ng buhay natin nandoon na pati pag-ibig [...] Ang napansin namin 15,000 lang kasi ang nagre-report sa Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) buong 2023,” Guzman said.
Scamwatch underscored that scammers would bank on victims’ emotions, making them believe they are special before luring the victims into trusting them enough to ask for monetary needs.
Guzman added that scammers in the country study Filipinos’ psyche and urged the public to look out for signs that a person might be involved in love scams.
The list included “sad boy/girls” which involve people starting the relationship with sob stories, using pity to spur the victim into giving money.
Aside from money, love scams also lean toward being asked to send nude photos.
Guzman noted the seducers and blackmailers who would use their facial features and sexual tones in chats to lure victims into sharing nude photos.
“Kapag humingi ng nude pics, pwede nang gamitin sa pag-black mail. Minsan hindi ginagamit for blackmail, hihingi pa rin ng pera,” he said.
He urged the public to double-check and verify the identity of the people they meet online for their own safety.
“Maging mapanuri tayo [...] Huwag tayong magtiwala kasi yung mga scammer na ‘to magbibigay ng ID pero sa kanila manggagaling. Ano naman kung i-double check natin?” Guzman said.
