Citing reports from the PNP Anti-Cybercrime Group about the increasing number of banking scams and identity theft cases in the country at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a congressman from Quezon City recently filed a bill that aims to make senior high school students “scam-proof.”
HB No. 4311 or the proposed “Scam Prevention Education Act” seeks to protect Senior High School students in both public and private schools against fraud by integrating scam prevention education into their curriculum.
According to Quezon City Representative Patrick Michael Vargas, the bill’s author, identity theft and other cases of cyber fraud may easily be prevented if we can successfully equip students and young adults with critical thinking skills.
“Amid the pandemic, the country’s Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) received a report that there’s been a 57 percent increase in suspicious banking transactions, indicating a surge in financial scams,” the congressman explained.
The House Bill added that while scammers would usually target adults, there is now also a need to protect children who are being exposed more to the Internet.
“It is the hope of this measure to empower the next generation of Filipinos with critical thinking skills to be able to protect themselves and their families from exploitative scammers,” a part of HB No. 4311 read.
“It is, therefore, vital for schools to promote anti-scam awareness throughout society as well as to equip students with useful knowledge wherein they can report cases once they encounter incidents of potential fraud or scam,” the bill continued.
Integrating Scam Education in the Senior HS curricula
According to Cong. Vargas, “A large majority of today’s young are tech-savvy and digitally engaged. No wonder, figures show that young people become easy prey to all kinds of scams — especially those from e-wallets and other online transactions.”
In the midst of reports about text messaging scams (SMiShing) and bank fraud becoming more rampant through the use of an e-wallet and a messaging app, a telecommunications firm recently reported that it has deactivated at least 5,670 spam and phishing numbers.
This year alone, the same company has already blocked 71 million spam and phishing messages using its dedicated cybersecurity team.
“This escalating threat of fraud not only stresses the need to protect young people from scams. It is also worth noting that fraudsters are also compromising our vulnerable children’s safety right where they are supposed to feel secure (in school),” the congressman added.
Should the bill be approved, the Department of Education (DepEd) would be tasked to consult with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), the Philippine National Police, the NBI, as well as other concerned agencies, to formulate the composition of the subject.
HB No. 4311, which has already been referred to the House committee on basic education and culture, is actually a revived push for a similar measure that’s been filed in the 18th Congress by the congressman’s brother, former Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas.