Tagalog Version (Click Here)
While I’ve already made a previous article about how to avoid scams online, this version is mostly about phishing and SMS spoofing scams which are becoming more common in the Philippines. If you don’t want to lose thousands or even millions of pesos to those kinds of scams, then keep reading to learn more about them and how to avoid them.
First off, to give you a picture of how phishing scams work, imagine you’re in a mall buying groceries. Suddenly, a “worker from an electric company” comes up to you and asks you for your name, home address, and the keys to your house because they need to “verify things”.
Will you give them your house keys?
You don’t want to? What if they say they’ll cut off your electricity if you refuse? Will you give them your address and house keys then?
Yeah, you probably already know that it’s OBVIOUSLY a scam, but people fall for that kind of thing ONLINE. That is exactly how phishing scams work, but instead of a scammer wearing a fake uniform and fake ID, it’s a text message or an email asking for your password, One-time PINs (OTPs), verification codes, and other important personal information.
Never give anyone your password, PINs, and OTPs as those are the “keys” to your accounts. REAL bank and company employees will never ask for that information, but criminals almost always do.
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