THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday scored individuals behind the misuse of the Emergency Cell Broadcast System (ECBS) for political campaigning, saying such acts are dangerous and inimical to public safety.
In an interview, Comelec Chairman George Garcia said they are against the use of ECBS to promote the candidacy of particular candidates.
The state-run National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) also warned the public about fake ECBS messages purporting to promote the candidacies of certain political personalities through text messaging.
The NTC also urged the public to remain vigilant against the misuse of SMS blasters, a device increasingly exploited to spread misinformation, misleading or fraudulent messages to influence voters, spread false information about the election process, and even manipulate public opinion.
“Such acts are dangerous as those equipment are used for national emergency situations like calamities, fire, typhoon, tsunami, earthquake, to inform the public,” said Garcia.
“If such mechanisms are abused, who will believe alerts on a real national emergency that require preparations?” he added.
Asked if such acts can be considered as Abuse of State Resources (ASR), the poll chief said it is a possibility.
“It is difficult to accuse local government units immediately. What if a private individual used the text blast machine? But if it’s the LGU, then that is an ASR,” said the official.
Garcia issued the statement after several social media posts showed an emergency text blast promoting the names of political candidates in Masbate City.
The candidates mentioned in the text blast are those running for governor, vice governor, district representative, and city mayor.
The NTC said these messages are being broadcast through a feature available in some SMS blasters using the cell broadcast or flash SMS option seen in software controlling the SMS blaster machines.
The feature was discovered during testing that the NTC conducted on several SMS blasters apprehended by the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG) as part of its intensified operations against sellers of these devices on online selling platforms.
The misuse of SMS blasters, particularly through emergency alert systems to disseminate campaign materials, is not only inappropriate but also undermines public trust in critical communication channels.
The NTC strongly advised the public to ignore similar messages received under the emergency broadcast facility unless it is a legitimate emergency message coming from the National Disaster and Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) or the PAG-ASA Weather and Flood Forecasting Center.
The NTC has endorsed reports of the misuse of emergency broadcasts to the relevant law enforcement agencies for investigation, as an illegal campaign, or the possibility of its use to discredit or malign the reputation of contending candidates in the upcoming elections.
In the past few weeks, the PNP-ACG and the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC), in coordination with the NTC, had been conducting multiple operations in Metro Manila and provinces to apprehend sellers of SMS blasters, signal jammers and IMSI catchers.
Violators may face imprisonment of up to 12 years and fines of up to P500,000 under the Cybercrime Prevention Act, Act No. 3846, as amended, the SIM Registration Act, and related NTC rules and regulations.
