IT’S holiday season! While that usually means festivities and merrymaking, it also means that scammers are working double time to victimize the public.
On Monday, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) and ScamWatch Pilipinas launched Holiday Watch PH 2025, exposing the top 12 scams to watch out for this holiday season:
- Online Shopping Scam
- Fake Delivery Scam
- Call Scam
- Task / Job Scam
- Investment Scam
- Love Scam
- Loan Scam
- Impersonation Scam
- Travel Scam
- Charity Scam
- Middleman Scam
- Online Gambling Scam
Scam Watch Pilipinas co-founder Jocel De Guzman explained that online shopping scam is the leading scam especially since many people are scrambling to find the perfect Christmas gift. This type of scam involves fake seller accounts on social media, fake websites, fake discounts, even fake products.
This is why authorities are urging the public to use official shopping apps and avoid sellers who prefer transacting over chat with direct e-wallet payments.
Closely connected to the top scam is the fake delivery scam where both the buyer and delivery riders are targeted.
Some reported cases have the riders pay for the item or collect payment from the buyer, only for the latter to discover that the package is empty or is an item different from the one ordered.
Some cases even have accomplices or crooked riders who do not complete the delivery once they have both the cash and item.
The CICC is advising the public to track their orders, avoid third-party delivery arrangements, and refuse COD if they are not aware of the order.
According to CICC acting Executive Director Undersecretary Aboy Paraiso, the campaign, now in its third year, aims to educate and protect the Filipino people from cybercriminals, not only during the Christmas season but throughout the year.
“The holiday season is when scammers become more aggressive and creative. This awareness campaign is part of our duty to equip every Filipino with the right knowledge so they won’t fall victim to fraudulent messages, fake deliveries, phishing calls, and other kinds of scams,” Paraiso said during the press conference.
de Guzman meanwhile encourages the public to practice four key habits to stop scammers: magdamot, magduda, mang-isnab, and magsumbong.
There are various ways to report scams, one of which is calling the National Anti-Scam Hotline at 1326 and the other one is by submitting screenshots and suspicious links at the eReport section of the eGOVPH app. Scam Watch Pilipinas is also encouraging the public to download the Whoscall app to help identify unknown callers and block potential scam callers.