MANILA, Philippines — The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) has called for heightened collaboration between government entities and private firms to shield the public from digital fraud as more citizens embrace the online economy and financial markets.
CICC Executive Director and Undersecretary Renato “Aboy” Paraiso emphasized that the rapid expansion of digital financial products makes a unified defense between regulators and private companies essential against cybercriminals.
The call comes after Mynt, the parent company of mobile wallet giant GCash, gained government clearance for its initial public offering (IPO)—a move set to broaden stock market participation for millions of app users nationwide.
“Cybersecurity is not the responsibility of the government alone – it requires strong collaboration with industry leaders like GCash,” Paraiso noted.
While the impending public listing presents retail investment opportunities, the CICC official cautioned that broadened access creates new targets for online fraudsters capitalizing on novice market participants.
“Scammers could exploit first-time investors who are unfamiliar with stock-market transactions by impersonating GCash, Mynt, brokers, regulators or other legitimate institutions,” Paraiso warned.
Clarifying the agency’s operational boundary, Paraiso noted that the CICC does not manage securities-related know-your-customer (KYC) protocols or evaluate investor eligibility, leaving those tasks to financial institutions and regulatory bodies.
Instead, the inter-agency body focuses on identifying, thwarting, and pursuing cybercriminal operations aimed at investors to mitigate online impersonation and fraudulent schemes.
Potential cyber threats targeting prospective investors include fraudulent GCash or Mynt IPO domains, fake social media channels, unauthorized “IPO brokers,” phishing schemes, malicious QR codes, and bogus claims offering guaranteed share allocations.
Such schemes pose a heightened danger to individuals accustomed to digital wallets but unfamiliar with capital market procedures. Agency statistics reveal that consumer fraud dominated reports submitted to the Cyber Crime Complaint Center in 2025, accounting for 35% of all logged cases.
Paraiso stressed that the agency’s protective measures will prove crucial as the upcoming market listing draws first-time traders into the stock market.
Joint initiatives between the CICC and GCash are expected to focus on tracking malicious sites, taking down fraudulent accounts, and releasing public guidelines to help investors verify authentic IPO channels.