Cybercrime

In the past few years, increase in cybercrime conducted through the Internet, has
emerged as a significant concern for government. The Cybercrime Prevention
Act of 2012, officially recorded as Republic Act No. 10175, is a law in the
Philippines approved on September 12, 2012. It aims to address legal issues
concerning online interactions and the Internet in the Philippines. Among the
cybercrime offenses included in the bill are cybersquatting, cybersex, child
pornography, identity theft, illegal access to data and libel. Under the new act, a
person found guilty of libelous comments online, including comments made on
social networks such as Facebook and Twitter or blogs, could be fined or jailed.
The act is also designed to prevent cybersex, defined as sexually explicit chat
over the internet - often involving "cam girls" performing sexual acts in front of
webcams for internet clients. The Act has universal jurisdiction: its provisions
apply to all Filipino nationals regardless of the place of commission.
Jurisdiction also lies when a punishable act is either committed within the
Philippines, whether the erring device is wholly or partly situated in the
Philippines, or whether damage was done to any natural or juridical person who
at the time of commission was within the Philippines. Several petitions have
been submitted to the Supreme Court questioning the constitutionality of the
Act. While this law is being discussed, many reactions has been made.
According to Senator Edgardo Angara, the main proponent of the Act, it is a
legal framework to protect freedoms such as the freedom of expression.
However, Senator Taoist Guingona III criticized the bill, calling it a prior
restraint to the freedom of speech and freedom of expression. Also, the law
generated a number of protests - anonymous activists hacked into government
websites, journalists held rallies & reactions made in the online community like
Facebook and twitter.
A report from the Department of Justice – Office of Cybercrime saw an
exponential increase in cyber tip reports for the Philippines to 2.8 million
in 2021 from 1.2 million in 2020 and 400,000 in 2019
Transformations in technology that have impacted the global economy have
ushered in an information and communication technology-led revolution. This
global shift has paved the way for what many has described as “a borderless
world” that has led to new ways of doing things in both the private and public
sector of a nation in today’s modern times. The concept of E-service (short for
electronic service) which is the hallmark of this technology represents an
 application that utilizes the use of information and communication mediated
technologies for the facilitation of the delivery of a varied scope of services or
aptly called “electronic services”. In the public sector, E-service enable public
agencies who are the service providers achieve enhanced administration in
delivering services for citizens or the public. This allows the flow and process
of information for all stakeholders to be processed efficiently. In the private
sector, applications of e-commerce are continually affecting trends and
prospects for business over the internet. E-commerce in the country encourages
shifts from traditional modes of doing business to electronic alternatives,
thereby enhancing the processing of business transactions. Its benefits are
limitless, from expanded geographic reach, easy access to information,
marketing and advertising visibility and cost reduction which all bottom lines to
increase revenues. Security is the challenge that faces the implementation of e-
services in a country in the country where such implementation is crucial to the
delivery of basic services to the populace. Without a guarantee of privacy and
security for information circulating in the internet, e-services will fail. The
menace of the proliferation of cybercrime activities hampers the reach of e-
government and compromises the achievement of its national goals in creating
enhanced socio-economic environment for its citizens. In essence, it is
tantamount to becoming a grave threat to national security. This paper sought
to present how cybercrime has impacted areas of both the public and private
sector here in the Philippines that threaten national security of its citizens. It
presented among others, a profile of cyber criminals including their tools and
motives, the modes and manner on how different cybercrimes are being
committed and the implications to specific stakeholders most vulnerable. In
view of the results, recognizing the national economic implications of cyber
threats, this paper concludes that the implications of cybercrime in the
Philippines are of an impending grave nature which threatens that national
security of its people, its private sector and its government.
The Philippine Situation According to the Philippines National Police (PNP),
cybercrimes increased sharply in 2010 and it is rising every year in this country.
Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) revealed that the
Philippine police reported 4,673 cybercrimes last year while there were only
527 cyber-criminal cases reported in 2006, a three-fold increase in a year. As
per the police, a total of 2,624 cases were reported between 2005 and 2010. In
2004, only 37 cases were reported and they kept surging every year with 56
cases in 2004 and 161 cases in 2005. In the span of two years, from 2004 to
2006, the PNP investigated 195 computer crimes, in which cases on various
subjects like credit and debit card fraud, Internet pornography, violation of
 copyright laws, and other computer related crimes were noticed. 4Symantec, a
software firm already released a report that stated more and more Filipinos are
falling as victims to online criminal activities and other malicious attacks every
year. Filipinos have fallen to a variety of attacks, which include among others,
malware invasion, online or phishing scams, and “sexual predation. 5For
individual personal users, social networking services, particularly Facebook,
which so far has at least16 million users in the Philippines is an area most
vulnerable to these crimes. Cybercriminals capitalize on unethical online
practices by most Filipino users and by using social engineering to make it
possible for internet users to believe they are in legitimate website. Such sites
are embedder with malicious applications into the would-be victim’s PC,
giving cybercriminals free access to personal information. In the business, as
well as in the public sector, cybercrime activities compromise the benefits of
stakeholders who patronize government’s efforts to thrust the use of e-
commerce and e-services in the country. Inappropriate use of personal
information is detrimental for both these sectors. E-services allow for the
private and public sector a whole range of services pertinent to inter-agency
processes needed by the general public. This is part of the national
government’s effort to shift to e-governance as a way of efficiently bringing its
services to the public, hence if such is compromised, it then becomes a grave
national concern. Factors Affecting the Proliferation of Cybercrime in the
Philippines There are around seven other pending House bills addressing the
problem of cybercrime in the country but up to now there is no other law on
Internet activity, aside from the E-Commerce Law, has been enacted in the
Philippines. Other factors that worsen the situation: measly budget earmarked
for cybercrime prevention.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 13) — Authorities arrested nine
people in separate operations in Angeles City on Monday for cybercrimes
related to phishing and hacking. According to police, the five Koreans and four
Filipinos who were apprehended victimized US citizens and Korean nationals.
The warrants of arrest were for violation of the Access Devices Regulation Act
of 1998 issued by Judge Benigno Abila of Regional Trial Court Branch 117,
Third Judicial Region, Angeles City. Lee Sungbo, a Korean national also known
as Seven, was arrested in Barangay Amsic. Koreans Yoensu Yoon, Junguk Lee,
and Filipinos Alyssa Payabyab Lee, Maiko De Luna Natividad, John Patrick
Sotto Gonzales and Bong Baja Garcia were arrested in another operation in
Barangay Malabanias. A third operation resulted in the arrest of Koreans Lee
Jaehun and Song Gil Sung also in Barangay Amsic. Seized during the
operations were various SIM cards, computers and laptops, mobile phones,
 flash drives, bank cards and other items. Service firearms from their security
personnel were also seized.
With the rise of ransomware attacks and cybercrime in the headline’s week after
week, fighting cybercriminals takes a multi-faceted approach that’s not just the
realm of the CTO, but of every business leader. the illegal use of computers and
the internet crime committed by means of computers or the internet.
From the real story of a virus that took out Iran’s urianium centrifuges to a
surprisingly good Dan Brown novel, these are some of the besA generation ago
cybercrime was as esoteric a subject to write about as quantum mechanics or
fluctuations in the derivatives market. Now it’s a central feature of many novels.
Whether it’s criminal gangs phishing to steal sensitive data to sell on the dark
web, or that creep from college catfishing people on Facebook, or the daily texts
asking us to click a link to claim a prize or verify a payment, we are under
continuous attack. Pension scams, identity thefts, all those strangers following
our children on TikTok, everywhere we turn, someone is trying to turn the
technology on which we rely against us.
This new reality is at the heart of my novel The Box. After Ed Truman’s
daughter Ally throws a milkshake at the leader of popular new incel movement
Men Together, she becomes a target for his followers. She is harassed, doxed
(whereby private information is published online to intimidate), and finally
disappears. Ed teams up with his daughter’s friend, Phoenix, a teenage hacker,
to find her, but they quickly find themselves on the run and off grid.
The microchip dominates many things in our life; the same is true for crime.
From online stalking to billion-dollar banking fraud, these days it’s mostly done
by computer. Here are some of my favourite books on this shift in the zeitgeist.
t stories of our new era of ill online deeds
1. The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security by
Kevin Mitnick
It’s a maxim in cybersecurity that the weakest point in a computer
network is the human. Whether in relation to phishing emails or a phone
call “from the bank” saying they’re calling about a fraudulent transaction,
Kevin Mitnick wrote the book on exploiting such vulnerability. He’s
written many books on hacking, notably his fascinating memoir Ghost in
the Wires, but my favourite is still this handy guide to social engineering.
Think you couldn’t be fooled into handing over crucial information?
Read this and think again.
 2. People Like Her by Ellery Lloyd
In the space of a decade social media stalking has become ubiquitous in
psychological thrillers, but few have done it so well as Ellery Lloyd, the
nom de plume of married writing team Collette Lyons and Paul Vlitos.
People Like Her tells the story of celebrity InstaMum Emmy and her
washed-up-novelist husband, who hates their newfound fame. Throw in a
cyber predator, some sparky writing, and a breathless dash to the finish
and you have one fantastic digital thriller.
3. The Blue Nowhere by Jeffery Deaver
Crime-fiction doyen Deaver was writing about hackers and online
scammers before most people had a home computer. Set in 1999 and
featuring dial-up modems and floppy disks, it pitches two hackers – one
an evil psycho luring his victims to their deaths, the other released from
prison to aid the investigation – into a relentless, blood-stained cat-and-
mouse chase. It’s dated, but it was ahead of its time, and few are better
than Deaver at keeping you hooked.
4. Impostor Syndrome by Kathy Wang
If, like me, you read Dave Eggers’ The Circle and thought “great book,
but where’s the story?” then Impostor Syndrome is for you. When Alice,
a keyboard drone at giant tech company Tangerine spots unusual activity
on the company servers, the ensuing conspiracy leads to the top. Part spy
mystery, part espionage thriller, part Silicon Valley satire about the role
of minority women in the dev community, few new novels feel as fresh
and cut
5. Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World’s
First Digital Weapon by Kim Zetter
With so many cyber crooks trying to fleece us with texts to pay for excess
postage it’s easy to forget that technology is also used to carry out
malicious acts at a national level. In 2010, centrifuges at Iran’s uranium
enrichment plant kept failing. The reason? A new type of virus called
Stuxnet developed by the US and Israel that caused them to spin too fast
and break. This is a fascinating story about state-sanctioned sabotage,
which presents the machine code techno-babble in simple terms any
reader can enjoy. Rent as this.