Property Company of Friends, Inc. (Profriends) recently hosted a hybrid, interactive learning session online and in its offices in Mandaluyong, Cavite, and Iloilo for the elderly family and friends of its employees and its residents. The activity provided a lot of practical insights and information on how they can safeguard their online assets and become more discerning in their cyber activities. Serving as the resource person for this discussion is GSIS Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, John Pineda.

Defining Digital Literacy

Digital literacy refers to the ability to effectively navigate, evaluate, and create information using digital technologies. Based on the latest Meltwater report, in the Philippines, 142 million (122% of total population), use cellular mobile connection. Among these, 97.5 million individuals use internet connection, and 90.8 million have social media user identities. The number shows a great opportunity for online scammers to target people online, specially those who are more vulnerable to scams--- the elderly and senior citizens.

Phishing Scam

During the talk, John explained that phishing scams are likened to the literal fishing, with hook having bait to capture a fish. A phishing scam is an attempt by cybercriminals, nation states, or hacktivists to lure you into giving away personal information to gain access to accounts or to infect your machine with malware and viruses. Phishing attempts can happen through a variety of channels, including email, social media, or text messages, and can compromise security and lead to theft of personal and financial data. There are 9 common signs of a phishing email:

1. 1. Unfamiliar tone or greeting
2. 2. Grammar and spelling errors
3. 3. Inconsistent email addresses, links, and domain names
4. 4. Threats or sense of urgencies
5. 5. Suspicious attachments
6. 6. Unusual requests
7. 7. Thin information
8. 8. Recipient did not initiate the conversation
9. 9. Request for credentials, payment information, or other personal details

If you happen to see these signs, report it--- there’s a button in your email account that says “Report Spam.”

Evading Text Scams

A text message is perceived as a scam if it tells you that you have won something but you have not joined any contests or raffle promos. These messages tell you how you are supposed to claim your prize by sending an unknown link or phone number. Some scam text messages use names of popular personalities to encourage you to believe that the contest is legitimate. Just remember: if you have not joined anything, you are not to win anything as well. Don’t fall for these text scams.

Protect Your Personal Data and Prevent Data Breach

Observe cyber hygiene--- don’t share your password, set a password that is difficult to guess, secure your password physically and digitally. Avoid connecting to untrusted network or wifi free connections. Regard the communication as ‘red flag’ if it is too good to be true and if it requires you to do something in urgency. To protect yourself from data breaches, it is advisable to use different passwords across your online accounts.

To create a tough first line of defence against scams, you may apply these four practical #KontraScamAttitude which Scam Watch Pilipinas espouses: Magdamot. Magduda. Mang-isnob. Magsumbong. Let us not be very accommodating online when we are not familiar with the people who are trying to get our personal information.

The activity was warmly appreciated by the attendees from Profriends’ flagship project, Lancaster New City. Says one of the lolas who attended, “We will share this with our church elderly group.” To which, another senior added, “It’s nice to go out and learning something important.”