Thursday, May 31, 2007 Toral: Fighting fraud and identity theft By Janette Toral Digital Filipino
I’M now preparing for an advance e-commerce training to be given to the winners of the DigitalFilipino.com Web Awards.
One of the resource persons who confirmed early was Paul Hubbard of Yes IT Corporation. This is the entity behind YesPinoy.com and YesPayments.com with a high degree of actual experience in dealing with fraud management.
I took the opportunity to inquire on its nearly four-year-old case against Marichu Villegas, Dante Castro and Zandro Del Pilar.
The three parties were arrested last October 2003 and accused of committing fraud using the YesPinoy.com website. They are out on bail and the case is still ongoing.
YesPinoy.com is an instant money remittance site where money can be sent using a credit card. A person who would like to send money to a person in the Philippines can order a Smart Money card for an intended recipient. This is where the remittance gets directed and the money can be withdrawn through various ATMs nationwide. The fraud committed included activities such as ordering a Smart Money card using another person’s name and making money remittances using the credit card details of other persons, mostly US citizens.
What dragged the case were the technicalities, such as the motion to quash, stating that YesPinoy.com is not the rightful party to file the case against the suspects, among others. It was only this year when Paul had been able to present evidence and proceed with the actual prosecution. The suspects plead “not guilty.”
When asked on the amount that was taken during those times, Paul said it was P15,000. This is the amount that they were able to spot. He no longer counted those that they disapproved in the process. But the point, according to Paul, was if the suspects were not stopped, the damage could have been worse.
What bothers me, though, is that when people, who have been accused of committing online fraud and are out on bail, with no restrictions, can still continue with their operation, improve their techniques, while taking advantage of the country’s very slow judicial process.
There’s a great need for industry players to come together and share information at this level.
Back in 2003, I recalled that a lot of fraud was committed using auction sites, like eBay where some would post lucrative offers and encourage the gullible buyer to provide their credit card details beforehand. This still happens to some today.
On a protective mindset, consumers need to be cautious when giving out personal information, even with trusted companies, especially when the data being asked, is extensive enough for another person to impersonate you or use your identity.
I recalled declining to receive money from a pawnshop when it asked me to fill out a form that required giving a right thumb mark print. Vigilance is a key in stopping fraud and identity theft. Security measures can be instituted at the company or association level.
Consumer groups should get their acts together and fight for appropriate information that can be taken from regular consumers so they could protect their identities.
