Group 3/Topic 3: Phishing

Everybody in the group must read the article “Inside job? Senior citizen loses P159,000 via
unauthorized online transfer”. Source: Inside job? Senior citizen loses P159,000 via unauthorized
online transfer Dizon, D. (2015, September 19). Inside job? Senior citizen loses P159,000 via
unauthorized online transfer. Retrieved http://www.abs-
cbnnews.com/business/08/30/2018/inside-job-senior-citizen-loses-p159000unauthorized-online-
transfer on 20 September 2015.
Answer the following guide questions and discuss your answers as a group:
• How can you tell if someone is phishing on your account?
• How did Mr. Malibiran lose his money in the bank? Narrate the incident.
• Do you think online banking is still safe? How can you avoid becoming a victim of phishing?
Synthesize your answers by creating a mind map.
The mind map may be drawn and written on cartolina or Manila paper, or be done through
presentation software. Discuss the answers as a group and be sure that the reporters are ready
to present the mind map to class.

Inside job? Senior citizen loses P159,000 via unauthorized online transfer
David Dizon, ABS-CBNnews.com
Posted at Sep 19 2015 12:24 AM | Updated as of Sep 19 2015 11:31 AM
MANILA - A senior citizen lost P159,000 in savings from a local bank via unauthorized online fund transfer
despite never using his account to transfer funds.

In an interview, businessman Carlos D. Malibiran said Akinto Marketing Corporation opened a payroll account
in his name at Union Bank Aurora-Balete Drive branch in July 2013.

Malibiran, 72, said he worked as a consultant for Akinto, earning P30,000 a month as consultancy fee, which was
deposited regularly to his account.

He said he used the original PIN supplied by the bank to check on his balance online via the Union Bank website
but never made a withdrawal, saying he usually withdrew his money over the counter.

During the second quarter of 2014, the Union Bank website rejected the PIN code that Malibiran used to check
on his account.

Malibiran said he asked his secretary to call the branch manager, identified as Christian Dumlao, who said that
the Union Bank website usually asked for additional information online as an added security measure.

"Ganyan talaga po for your additional protection," he recalled the manager as saying.

Malibiran then continued to use his account for one to two months.

He last made a P20,000 over-the-counter withdrawal from his account at Union Bank on June 5, 2014 and then
decided he wanted to let the money accumulate for a while so that he would have cash before Christmas.

Without his knowledge, the monthly consultancy fees that were being deposited to his account twice a month
were being withdrawn via online fund transfer.

As a result, a total of P159,000 were withdrawn from his account without his knowledge from July to October
2014.

"When I asked my secretary to call the manager about the balance, the manager said: 'Bakit, may ine-expect ba
kayo na papasok na pera?' Sabi niya wala kasi ine-expect namin may P159,000 na diyan. Ang sabi ng manager:
'Hindi ho, mam. 53 pesos na lang," Malibiran said.

A check on his transaction records showed that the online withdrawals were being done every start of the month
on July and August 2014.

The withdrawals then increased in frequency and were being done on the same day that funds were being
deposited to the account.
TRANSACTIONS

JULY 1, 2014 - P39,000 - WITHDRAWAL VIA ONLINE FUND TRANSFER

JULY 14, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

JULY 28, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

AUGUST 1, 2014 - P30,000 - WITHDRAWAL VIA ONLINE FUND TRANSFER

AUGUST 13, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

AUGUST 28, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

AUGUST 28, 2014 - P30,000 - WITHDRAWAL VIA ONLINE FUND TRANSFER

SEPTEMBER 12, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

SEPTEMBER 29, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

SEPTEMBER 29, 2014 - P30,000 - WITHDRAWAL VIA ONLINE FUND TRANSFER

OCTOBER 13, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

OCTOBER 14, 2014 - P15,000 - WITHDRAWAL VIA ONLINE FUND TRANSFER

OCTOBER 28, 2014 - P15,000 - PAYROLL CREDIT

OCTOBER 28, 2014 - P15,000 - WITHDRAWAL VIA ONLINE FUND TRANSFER

"Hindi ito authorized. I have never authorized anybody to withdraw from my account," Malibiran said.

Malibiran's secretary and Akinto's accounts manager also went to the bank to complain but were told that the
funds were transferred to different depositors.

When they asked for the names of these accounts, the manager refused because the bank secrecy law disallows
the release of information about depositors.

The manager also promised to forward the matter to Union Bank's anti-fraud department, which investigated the
case.

On November 2014, Malibiran also sent a demand letter through his lawyers, asking for a reimbursement of his
missing funds. A copy of the letter was also sent to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.

PHISHING?

On January 12, 2015, the business manager of Union Bank Aurora-Balete Drive branch sent a letter to Malibiran
saying that his account's credentials were compromised, which allowed the unauthorized fund transfers.

"You have stated that the withdrawals were unauthorized, and it is rather unfortunate that your account's
credentials were at some point compromised and made known to a third party who then used the information to
perpetrate the withdrawals," the letter read.

"Typically, the information is gathered through a phishing email which pretends to be from a legitimate source
and asking to verify the account holder's personal information for some made-up reasons. They would then direct
the client to a counterfeit website and ask to input account credentials."

Malibiran's personal secretary Pamela Darunday, however, refuted the bank's explanation. She said she only used
the Union Bank's website to check the balance of the account.

She also said they have never received any e-mail from the bank, asking for information on Malibiran or directing
them to click on a link.

"All the withdrawals before July 2014 were done over-the-counter and never online," she said.

Akinto's accounting manager Roderick Ramos also told ABS-CBN News that they removed 41 payroll accounts
from Union Bank Aurora-Balete Drive branch after discovering the theft. The payroll accounts are now with a
different bank, he said.
Malibiran said he is disappointed that Union Bank cannot protect their depositors even while promoting their
online banking system.

"They should have safety nets and explain it to their depositors. In all previous online inquiries, they were okay.
Tapos nung bandang huli, ayaw nang tanggapin. Website nila yun," he said.

He said he is also surprised that the funds were being withdrawn on the same day that the money was credited to
his account.

"The bank knows to whom the money went and yet they have not exerted any effort to inquire to that depositor
'bakit ka nagkaroon ng ganito? Saan ba nanggaling yan? Malabnaw ang safety net. Dapat extra effort from the
bank despite the secrecy. Pakiramdam ko inside job from the bank."

He also said he plans to make an appeal to the Bangko Sentral to make a ruling on the matter in the interest of
depositors.

OTHER BANK DEPOSITORS LOSE MONEY

Malibiran's case of missing money is not the first to be reported.

A TV Patrol report earlier described the case of Union Bank depositor Marlene Atienza who also lost P115,000
from her account a day after she checked her balance.

Atienza said the funds were also transferred to another account via online bank transfer.

"Nagulat ako P400 na lang laman ng account," she said. "Pinakita ko sa branch manager at agad naman na-trace
nila."

Another depositor, Bernadeth Ong, lost P20,000 from her account, which was withdrawn from Ortigas. Ong,
however, lives in Davao City and has never been to Ortigas.

"Ang sabi nila baka na-skimming," she said.

Frane Ong, Union Bank depositor from Cagayan de Oro, said he also lost P90,000 from his account right after
checking his balance on the Union Bank website.

"Nagtaka ako, akala ko nung una error lang. Baka sa system. Lumampas 150 days wala pa ring nangyayari," he
said.

ABS-CBN News also learned about one bank depositor whose account showed funds being deposited and
withdrawn on the same day, without his knowledge.

Union Bank Executive Vice President Genaro Lapez earlier said Union Bank, just like other banks, has issued
and continues to issue advisories to the public, warning them against these scams.

"These can be seen in our website, in our posters, in our ATMs and in various media in order to promote awareness
to our clients," he said in a statement.

However, he also pointed out that in cases of phishing "where the client unknowingly volunteers his/her personal
information to scammers, the bank does not reimburse the cash lost by the client."

BSP Assistant Governor Johnny Noe Ravalo said depositors who are victimized by phishing scams should file a
complaint with the Bangko Sentral so that the BSP can act on the matter.

He said the BSP is also looking into how banks protect their clients against all kinds of fraud.

“We can go to banks and rate them from1 to 4.3 and 4 will be the passing. 1 and 2 means the bank has big
problems,” he said.
 Rubrics for the Oral Presentation:

Criteria 10 8 6 4

Rubrics for the Mind Map:

Criteria 5 4 3 2