Kaspersky warns Filipino voters vs poll scams, fake news

As the Philippine election season started with the filing of certificates of candidacy (COC), Kaspersky warned Filipinos against the proliferation of scams and disinformation.

The cybersecurity firm reminded the public to be cautious of suspicious e-mails and to only trust reliable sources for their daily news.

In a statement on Monday, Kaspersky said cybercriminals were taking advantage of the Philippine election season to launch their cyberattacks. 

The cybersecurity expert said these hackers were sending fraudulent e-mails, some of them posing as a campaign official, to lure unsuspecting victims into clicking malicious links. 

Upon clicking, the users will be led to fake websites where their sensitive information might be stolen.

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This has been the modus operandi of hackers to illegally obtain personal data like address, account passwords, and bank account details. The motivation is usually financial as they attempt to take over one’s e-wallet or bank account and siphon out money. 

Meanwhile, Kaspersky also flagged the potential spread of fake news aimed at misinforming the public about the election and the candidates. 

“Malicious actors can spread false information, including altered election results, fabricated candidate statements, or misleading narratives aimed at swaying voter decisions,” it explained.

The spread of fake news is nothing new in the country. In fact, Filipinos’ heavy use of social media has made them highly vulnerable to manipulation by coordinated and well-funded false information channels. 

In 2018, Facebook’s global politics and government outreach director Katie Harbath even referred to the Philippines as “patient zero” in the global war against disinformation.

As such, Kaspersky reminded the public to only subscribe to official sources of information. It also told Filipinos to be cautious of messages from unknown contacts or forwarded links on Viber and other messaging platforms that may contain fake news.

“Elections are not only a concern for candidates and their campaign teams. Ordinary citizens are also at risk of falling victim to cyberattacks, as cybercriminals often exploit personal information to spread disinformation, influence public opinion, and propagate fake news,” said Adrian Hia, managing director for Asia Pacific at Kaspersky. 

“That’s why it’s essential for everyone—not just organizations—to stay vigilant, be informed about potential cyber threats, and take steps to protect themselves online,” he added.

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Cybercriminals are known to be taking advantage of major events like mega sales day, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and other holidays when launching their cyberattacks. 

In the Philippines, text scams are a common type of phishing attack. Hackers, in these text messages, trick the recipients into clicking the embedded malicious links by offering fake job opportunities and lottery winnings, among others.

The telecommunication companies have been working with regulators to curb these spam messages by blocking them. 

However, cyber criminals are circumventing the telcos’ monitoring by sending their messages through over-the-top platforms or chat applications like Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp, Viber and Telegram.

The public has been told to ignore these messages to protect themselves.