BankFraudPH

09/05/2026

IMPORTANT CYBER SECURITY NOTICE:

Prevention for FAKE SMS SENDER a.k.a. IMSI CATCHER SCAM

To configure set your phone* to 5G/4G by using Phone Code * #* #4636 #* #*

*depends on phone's make & model for this to work.

29/04/2026

We have been notified of at least 2 purported MOBILE DEVICES TAKEOVER wherein hackers allegedly hijacking the victims gadgets en route to accessing their mobile banking apps then draining their funds.

This has lots to do with "Cyber Hygiene" which refers to routine practices and habits that keep devices, accounts, and data safe from threats—just like personal hygiene keeps the body healthy.

See infograph and victims' testimonies herewith for your guidance.

23/04/2026

Are BANK SCAM VICTIMS allowed to have ACCESS to the PERPETRATOR's (beneficiary bank account) INFORMATION WITHOUT a COURT ORDER? Yes- but only indirectly through law enforcement agencies. Here's how it works:

14/04/2026

MANAGING FINANCIAL FRAUD RISKS ARE WELL WITHIN OUR HANDS...

Sharing my best practices in securing my bank accounts:

A. 5 Credit Cards 💳 - having 6 to 7 digits Credit Limits all locked 🔒 most of the time through the app. I only unlock them if I'm gonna use or a few hours before leaving the house then lock again. I have a virtual card that's unlocked all the time for small online purchases with minimal 15k CL exposure.

+ Guard ⛔ against:
• Unauthorized Transactions
• IMSI Catcher
• BIN Attacks
• Hacking
• Physical Card Theft

B. 90% of monetary funds 💶 are placed in long term fixed income investments earning 5 to 7% P.A. returns 📈 / quarterly dividends payouts but capital can be liquidated anytime with minimal losses depending on prevailing market conditions. Accumulated funds from "C" are invested here when viable opportunities become available.

+ Diversified, high interest earning, minimal risks, untouchable 🛑
• Gov't Bonds
• Blue Chips Bonds and Preferred Shares
• Time Deposits

C. 10% of Funds in UITF (conservatively subscribed with Money Market Funds- typically day+1 redemption lead time), serves as Emergency Funds & Cash on Hand. Dividends from "B" are placed here then reinforced by Salaries, Buy & Sell earnings.

+ Diversified Savings / Current Accounts, Minimal Exposures

• 2 Digital Banks as staging so it keeps earning interests until funds are used.
• 4 traditional banks having minimum to no maintaning balance- use for ATM, Bills Payments & other bank services. Funded by UITF and/or Digital Banks only when need to transact soon.
• Credit Cards play a major role in managing liquidity as well- Credit lines are first to be used before cash.

+Think about this:

• Current accounts- savings, checking, passbook, ATM are readily withdrawable even by fraudsters.

• Investments & time deposits- layer of protection vis a vis current accounts and unauthorized withdrawal. Practically untouchable until redeemed or when it matures.

• And of course, the adage "Don't put your eggs in one basket" applies.

Most of us don't realize how important it is to secure our accounts until we get hit by scams. The best thing with the setup that I've mentioned is your money earns passively while protecting it against scams. So better start now- your money, your rules.

21/02/2026

19/02/2026

Those who got scammed pa lang a few hours to a few days ago, try this route via merchant simulataneous with your dispute claims with the bank. You might end up with the same success story with the victim who had her BDO Credit Card defrauded (depicted below). Although not all merchants are accommodating, I have seen similar instances that they (merchants) have been quite helpful specially if you are lucky enough to talk with an experienced CSR. Essentially, you need to initiate the cancelation of the scammer's transaction involving your credit card. Then the refund will follow once the transaction has been voided.

"I didn't win the dispute, denied so many times and even had mail from BDO warning me for continuing the disputes kahit they've finish the investigation, na yun nga denied and I'm accountable sa chargers na hindi ko nman ginawa. I was just smart enough na to contact the merchant which was an airlines and tagged the charges as fraudulent within minutes the cc was charge. It took a month and it was the airlines that helped me, they refunded everything as the flights never transpired kase nareport kagad. P120K yun."

07/02/2026

**“ANG FINANCIAL FORTRESS NI JUN”**
“Pre, may papasok na performance bonus,” sabi ni Jun isang real estate professional habang nakapila sa kapehan, hawak ang phone.

“Gaano kalaki?” tanong ni Mark.

Jun ngumiti. “Isang milyon. Kaya ayoko masayang.”

Tahimik si Jun, pero **maalam**. Alam niya ang nangyayari sa paligid—phishing links, SIM swap horror stories, *budol* apps na mukhang legit pero uubusin ka pala. Kaya bago pa man niya ma-feel yung excitement, **nag-isip na siya ng depensa**.

---

# # # **THE BAIT (Frontline ni Jun)**

Pagpasok ng pera, **hindi** niya pinark lahat sa ATM o checking.

“Uy Jun, bakit ang liit ng balance ng ATM mo?” tanong ng teller.

“Exactly,” sagot niya, nakangiti.

“Yan ang pain,” bulong niya sa sarili.

Kung may scammer na pumasok? *Yan lang ang makikita nila.*

---

# # # **THE FORTRESS (Ang Totoong Kayamanan)**

Pag-uwi niya, binuksan ni Jun ang mobile banking—maingat, walang random links, sariling data lang.

Hinati niya ang ₱1,000,000:

* **UITF – Money Market**

“Hindi instant, Day+1 redemption,” sabi niya.

*Liquid pero hindi basta-basta mailalabas.*

* **Time Deposits (Ladder Style)**

* 30 days

* 60 days

* 90 days

* 120 days

“Rolling ‘to,” paliwanag niya kay Mark sa chat.

“Pag may kailangan, saka lang babalik sa current account. Hindi sabay-sabay. Hindi exposed.”

**Parang kastilyo:**

ATM = gate

Mobile app = bahay

UITF & TD = **vault sa ilalim ng lupa**

---

# # # **THE CONFLICT (Ang Budol Moment)**

Isang gabi.

*Ping!*

“GCash: Verify your account now or it will be locked.”

Napakunot-noo si Jun.

“Hmm… sayang,” bulong niya. *Too obvious.*

Pero—plot twist—kinabukasan, biglang **walang signal** ang phone niya.

“Ha? Bakit walang network?”

SIM swap.

Maya-maya, may alert sa email:

*New device logged in.*

Sa kabilang side ng kwento—

“YES!” sigaw ng scammer.

“Pasok na sa app!”

Tiningnan niya ang balance.

**ATM Savings: ₱1,500**

**Checking: ₱0**

“…Ha?”

Refresh.

Refresh ulit.

“Nasaan yung milyon?!”

Scroll. Click. UITF tab.

*Redemption: T+1*

*Time Deposit: Locked – 60 days remaining*

Tahimik.

Kamot ulo.

“Anong klaseng biktima ‘to?!”

---

# # # **THE RESOLUTION (Peace of Mind)**

Kinabukasan, naayos ni Jun ang SIM, napalitan ang passwords, naka-lock ang accounts.

Umupo siya, huminga nang malalim.

“Grabe,” sabi niya. “Kung naka-ATM lang ‘to… ubos.”

Nagkape siya. Walang panic. Walang *sayang* moment.

Hindi niya pera ang tinatago sa app—

**oras ang tinatago niya.**

At ang oras, **kalaban ng scammer**.

Ngumiti si Jun.

“Hindi kailangan maging milyonaryo para maging maingat,” sabi niya sa sarili.

“Kailangan mo lang ng **Financial Fortress**.”

At sa isang mundo ng OTPs, phishing links, at budol apps—

**hindi sitting duck ang pera niya.**

Nakakandado. Tahimik. Ligtas. Tumutubo ng Interests 💪🇵🇭

07/02/2026

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗡𝗖𝗘𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗡𝗢𝗡 𝗣𝗔𝗬𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗧 𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗗 𝗗𝗘𝗕𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗚𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗞𝗨𝗡𝗚 𝗜𝗞𝗔𝗪 𝗢𝗥 𝗦𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗥 𝗔𝗡𝗚 𝗚𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗠𝗜𝗧 𝗡𝗚 𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗗 𝗠𝗢

• Banks through its collection agencies may file a case then if they win, they can garnish / sequester your properties. That's as far as they can move. WALANG NAKUKULONG SA HINDI PAGBABAYAD NG UTANG.

• Your credit rating will get ruined. Mahihirapan ka to get approved for another card and even loans will be difficult .

What you can do:
• Kung may kukunin kang properties etc, better ipangalan mo na muna sa mga kamag anak mo as much as possible . Until the prescribed period of filing a civil case (10 yrs per PH Law) is over. But then if the debt is relatively small / perhaps less than 100k, the banks / collection agencies may not even bother going after you legally just a waste of resources for them.

• Kumuha ka na agad ng other credit cards, loans while your credit standing is not yet in peril. Kapag na endorse na kasi sa collection agencies yan account mo your tarnished credit rating becomes visible na to other card / loans provider along that line.

Lastly and quite important: if you have bank savings even investment / UITF accounts, better pull them out na as soon as possible. They have what they call kasi as "Deposit Set Off" wherein they can charge your savings funds for your unpaid CC debts.

27/01/2026

Back in 2023, we were interviewed by Rappler regarding our perceived immediate "self-defense" against bank accounts scam. Here's an excerpt of our discussion with Mr. Lance Yu along with other recommended safeguards against financial fraud through the links below.

"Anti-fraud advocacy group BankFraudPH, instead recommended keeping the bulk of your savings in stable financial instruments, like time deposits or money market unit investment trust funds.

This gives a couple of benefits, such as earning higher returns than a regular savings account while also taking low risks, given their conservative nature.

When it comes to security, sometimes slower is better too. It’s harder for a fraudster to impersonate you and withdraw money when they’re stored in these financial instruments, especially since it takes about one full day for the bank to process withdrawals from these instruments.

“Perpetrators cannot readily touch your money which are placed in such ‘vaulted’ investment instruments,” BankFraudPH told Rappler.""

You can access the full article via Rappler:

Registered Users:

https://www.rappler.com/business/practical-tips-keep-yourself-safe-bank-fraud/

via Wayback Machine (No registration Required):

https://web.archive.org/web/20240714224957/https://www.rappler.com/business/practical-tips-keep-yourself-safe-bank-fraud/

You’ve all heard about not sharing your OTP to anyone – but there are also other things you can do. Here are some tips from cybersecurity experts.

11/01/2026

It has come to our attention that CIMB PH has been restricting their account holders' transactions as noted in the screenshots herewith. While it may be part of their due diligence of system audit, it has also caused inconveniences to their clients by holding their funds without any restoration timeline whatsoever. Numerous testimonies states that affected clients even reached out to CIMB PH that went for naught.

While this advocacy group BankFraudPH has been focused on helping bank scam victims since 2020 and featured in various new sites like ABS CBN, Rappler among others, we'll take this CIMB case as an exception / although non fraud related since it has been causing disruptions that's been unheard of vis-a-vis other financial institutions.

Affected CIMB Account holders, kindly indicate the ff in the comment section. We'll see what we can do. Pls refrain from putting sensitive info:

Account name, Date Restricted, Amount

04/10/2025

We've been recommending this kind of fund safekeeping strategy against scams since time immemorial even before AI came to fore.

👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

Via ChatGPT

You said:
Which is the safer means to avoid scams- time deposits / uitf or current accounts?
ChatGPT said:
Got it 👍 Let’s line them up clearly:

🔒 Scam Safety Comparison
1. Current Accounts (Savings/Checking with ATM/Passbook)
Exposure to scams: High

Vulnerable to ATM skimming, phishing links, SIM swap fraud, check forgery, and account hacking.

Money is liquid — scammers who gain access can withdraw/transfer instantly.

Insurance: Covered by PDIC up to ₱500,000 per depositor per bank — but PDIC only applies if the bank fails, not if you were scammed.

Verdict: Most prone to scams because funds are always accessible.

2. Time Deposits
Exposure to scams: Low

Locked for a fixed term, not easily withdrawable online or via ATM.

Requires formal bank procedures and proper documentation for redemption.

Insurance: Also covered by PDIC up to ₱500,000.

Verdict: Safer than current accounts in terms of scam protection.

3. UITFs (Unit Investment Trust Funds)
Exposure to scams: Low to Very Low

Pooled investments handled by the bank’s trust department.

Redemption usually takes 1–3 banking days, so scammers can’t instantly liquidate.

Not PDIC insured, but regulated by BSP, and funds are kept separate from the bank’s own money.

Verdict: Safe from scams, though subject to market risk (value can go up or down).

📌 Overall Ranking (Scam Safety Only)
Safest → Riskiest (scam-wise):
👉 Time Deposit ≈ UITF → Current Account

Time Deposit = very safe against scams + PDIC insured.

UITF = very safe against scams, but market risk & no PDIC.

Current Account = most vulnerable to scam frauds, even with PDIC.

✅ If your #1 goal is scam protection: Time deposit or UITF are much safer than current accounts.
✅ If you also want zero market risk: Time deposit is better than UITF.