MANILA, Philippines — Sen. JV Ejercito pledged support for efforts to strengthen the Department of Justice (DOJ) and National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in fighting cybercrime, online fraud and other digital scams.
Ejercito, who chairs the Senate committees on Finance and Justice, said lawmakers should provide sufficient funding for the agencies’ cybercrime units as online offenses continue to increase.
“We need to strengthen our cybercrime units because this is a clear and present danger. Almost everything is online now. Even illegal activities are being carried out online, so we cannot afford to let the digital space become a free-for-all,” Ejercito said during a budget hearing for the DOJ and its attached agencies.
“I want to help you address cybercrime, cyber fraud and cyber scams because these have become very rampant. We hear about them almost every day,” he added.
NBI Director Melvin Matibag said the agency’s Cybercrime Division remains one of its busiest offices, handling seven to eight out of every 10 cybercrime-related cases each month.
Matibag said the division also monitors the dark web for cyber-related threats, including activities linked to nihilistic violence.
He said the proposed P175 million allocation for the NBI Cybercrime Division under the 2027 national budget would fund equipment and other tools to strengthen its capabilities.
The NBI also plans to establish liaison offices or attaché posts in countries with large Filipino communities to help overseas Filipino workers who fall victim to cyber fraud.
“We intend to put an NBI liaison officer in other countries where we have a strong presence of OFWs because many of our OFWs are victims of cyber fraud. This will allow us to process and assist with the cases involving our fellow Filipinos,” Matibag said.
During the hearing, Ejercito also asked about the possible involvement of transnational criminal groups and foreign entities in cyber scams, information manipulation and online trolling in the Philippines.
Ejercito specifically asked whether foreign entities could fund information operations aimed at discrediting the government or influencing public opinion on issues such as the West Philippine Sea.
Matibag said the NBI has “strong indications” of information manipulation and interference involving foreign entities, although he said the agency had not necessarily linked the activity to foreign governments.
“We have strong indications that there is information manipulation and interference by foreign entities. Not necessarily foreign governments, but there is an effort to do that,” he said.
Matibag said the NBI is also moving toward establishing a Transnational Crime Investigation Unit to address such activities.
He said these activities could have economic and political implications, particularly as the Philippines approaches the 2028 elections.
