Securing online accounts and choosing safe and trusted brands to interact with is only the beginning to ensuring your safety online, according to Earl Melivo, Interim APAC Director of WorldRemit.
In today’s society, the collection of personal information is necessary to carry out financial transactions but customers need to be conscious of who they are providing that data to.
“Stop, check and reject every suspicious message. As scams and fraud continue to rise, all Filipinos should stay alert and diligent,” said Melivo.
While digital remittances are perceived as a high-risk sector for financial crime, regulated organizations, like WorldRemit, maintain a high commitment to cybersecurity, as they are often working hand-in-hand with regulators and bank partners around the world. This is translated into concrete processes that embed a culture of compliance.
“We maintain an experienced compliance team that understands and detects financial crime risks. In addition, our longstanding membership in the FinTech Financial Crime Exchange has also been instrumental to the platform to regularly review its security measures and keep user transactions protected from any external threats,” said Melivo.
WorldRemit is a leading global payments company. It disrupted an industry previously dominated by offline legacy players by taking international money transfers online–making them safer, faster and lower-cost.
It currently sends from 50 to 130 countries, operate in more than 5,000 money transfer corridors worldwide and employ around 1,200 people globally.
On the sending side WorldRemit is 100 percent digital (cashless), increasing convenience and enhancing security. For those receiving money, the company offers a wide range of options including bank deposit, cash collection, mobile airtime top-up and mobile money.
WorldRemit’s headquarters are in London, United Kingdom with regional offices around the globe.
In October 2022, Cybersecurity Month in the Philippines kicked off amidst national concerns over a rise in cyberattacks, cybercrimes, and other issues with customer data breaches.
Awareness of and protection from these cyber attacks is accessible to many but despite this, risks of cyber attacks in the Philippines are still high – with this in mind, customers need to be extra vigilant when accessing financial services online.
In response to these emerging trends and issues, plans to secure more efficient data protection practices have been discussed by the Philippines Government and in particular, the Department of Information and Communications Technology which introduced the National Cybersecurity Plan 2022.
This plan aims to implement and enforce mechanisms towards a cybersecurity-educated and cyber resilient society, secure infrastructures and networks and effective coordination with law enforcement agencies when there has been a breach.
The newly-signed SIM card registration law aims to require the registration of Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards for electronic devices. In doing so, it will promote accountability and provide law enforcement agencies with mechanisms to resolve crimes committed otherwise anonymously.
These measures are becoming more relevant due to widespread issues in cybersecurity across the Philippines. The circulation of spam text messages containing scams, for example, have been the most rampant concern for millions of Filipinos in recent months. Many users have reported anonymous numbers getting ahold of their names and mobile numbers, and receiving messages with scam-filled links for the purpose of financial gain.
