GLOBE Telecom Inc. (Globe) on Sunday welcomed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s recent signing of the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (Afasa).
The telco said the newly signed law, which sets more robust deterrence and enforcement measures by regulating the use of financial accounts, will help protect customers from falling victim to cybercrimes.
"As a service provider that deals with fraudsters every day, Globe is grateful that the Philippines now has a law that is up to date and addresses fast-evolving threats to the security of our financial system," Globe President and CEO Ernest Cu said in a statement.
The new law is expected to complement the Cybercrime Prevention Act and the SIM Registration Act and strengthen security measures against ever-evolving scam tactics, Globe added.
"We especially appreciate how the law covers in great detail various emerging fraud methods, including the recruitment of money mules, social engineering schemes, and other modes assisted by tech, including SMS (short message services), email, and even generative AI (artificial intelligence)," Cu said.
"This ultimately gives regulators and law enforcers sharper teeth in stopping financial fraud."
The Afasa mandates banks and other financial institutions to implement stringent security measures and management systems to protect financial accounts.
It also empowers the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to thoroughly investigate and scrutinize financial accounts potentially involved in illicit activities and immediately apply for cybercrime warrants for implicated electronic communications.
Penalties for violations include imprisonment of six to eight years and fines of up to P500,000 for money mule schemes; prison time of 10 to 12 years or fines of up to P1 million for social engineering schemes; and life imprisonment or fines of up to P5 million for economic sabotage.
Moving forward, Globe reaffirmed its commitment to enforce stringent monitoring and blocking of potential financial fraud in its network.
"Globe will remain a staunch ally of the government and financial institutions in beating fraud. Through the passage of Afasa, we look forward to a safer financial environment for our customers and the public," Cu said.
The telco noted that its collaboration with banks and other financial institutions to curb financial fraud has resulted in reduced bank-related spam and scam messages in its network for the first half of 2024.
Fraudsters, Globe continued, have decided to look for other means to defraud potential victims as the telco has blocked more than 2.74 million bank-related spam and scam messages for the first six months of 2024, a 44-percent decline compared to the 4.85 million messages blocked a year earlier.
Globe shares closed up by P10 to P2,124.00 each on Friday.
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