Editorial: Best defense against scams: The would-be victim

A 42-year-old farmer from Gaas, a mountain village in Balamban town, Cebu is the latest victim of scammers who possibly used the contact information she posted on the comment section of the Facebook page of a popular Manila-based game show hosted by Willie Revillame.

Rosana (real name withheld) told the police that after watching Revillame’s show on her smartphone on Oct. 25, 2022, she wrote her contact information as it was the instruction of the host for the show’s next raffle draw.

A few moments later, Rosana received a call from a man who sounded like the popular host, telling her that she had won P50,000. Their conversation was cut off by someone who introduced himself as Revillame’s staff and told Rosana that she had won another P50,000.

Perhaps enticed by her supposed winnings, Rosana followed the instructions dictated by the person on the other line, and most of the instructions involved the farmer paying for many fees before she could collect her prize. The total number of payments that Rosana sent to the scammers from Oct. 25 to Nov. 28 was P20,600.

Rosana never received the “prize.” What made her story so sad was that part of the money she sent via GCash, a popular mobile wallet app, had been borrowed from her neighbors.

Scammers would not succeed if their targets would not believe them right away. In short, the would-be victim is the best and the first line of defense against scams that are still rampant on the internet and social media.

This is not to rub salt into Rosana’s wounds, but her experience could serve as a lesson for other Cebuanos and Filipinos in general.

A person who did not join any contest or raffle draw must be skeptical if he receives a text message or a call from an unknown individual telling him that he has won a prize. He must not believe it because it is the usual trap set by the scammer.

Rosana’s predicament highlights the lack of digital literacy of some Filipinos, especially those living in mountain villages.

Perhaps, police units can partner with barangay councils in educating the public about many kinds of scams that are currently employed by unscrupulous individuals.

The other way to dampen online scammers is by arresting and prosecuting them. The new SIM Registration Law, even though still untested, could help in this aspect.

But for Rosana’s case, there is a possibility that the police cannot trace and identify her scammers because the registration of phone numbers is still ongoing until April 26, 2023 as mandated by the SIM Registration Law. The scammers possibly used unregistered numbers in contacting the farmer.