Human trafficking in Asia going online

3 May 2014
Authors: Alistair DB Cook and Caitríona H Heinl, RSIS
Human traffickers have an increasing number of targets online in Southeast Asia. The ASEAN
region has a growing population of over 600 million — and internet users have doubled.
Technology-facilitated trafficking is more diffuse and adaptive than initially thought, but online
tools can also be creatively employed to counter cross-border trafficking.
The explosion in mobile phone usage in the region facilitates real-time communication and
coordination by traffickers to recruit, harbour, transport, and provide higher numbers of victims
for commercial sexual activity or forced labour.
This in turn broadens their horizon and increases their reach. The sharp incline in mobile
broadband subscribers is also driving the explosion in global connectivity according to the
United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Levels of cybercrime are increasing as
individual and organised criminal groups exploit new opportunities without the need for complex
skills. For instance, online social media allows for new ways to facilitate people trafficking,
distribution of child abuse material, and new avenues for recruiting victims.
Although ASEAN signed the Declaration Against Trafficking in Persons, Particularly Women
and Children, no significant progress on implementing the Declaration has been made. In
particular, this is because East Asian countries are a major source for long-distance, transregional
trafficking. In the most recent UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, East Asia and
the Pacific account for nearly 40 per cent of detected child victims. Also, victims from this
region are the most geographically dispersed — found in more than 60 countries.
Trafficking networks seek children for illegal adoption, commercial sexual exploitation, drug
trafficking and child labour. Children under 18 using social media platforms often fall victim to
traffickers. In the first instance, a young person might receive a friend notification from an
unknown person but still accept the request. They increase exchanges, agree to meet and after
continued social media interaction they meet again. The child subsequently gets trafficked and
this is how an estimated one quarter of children reported missing in Indonesia are thought to
have met their captors on social media platforms like Facebook.
In February 2014, Chinese authorities rescued 382 babies and arrested more than 1000 people
suspected of buying and selling young children online. This followed a six-month operation in
which authorities were made aware of a website promoting private adoptions. Law enforcement
authorities subsequently uncovered an online black market that connected buyers and sellers over
four websites, online forums and some 30 groups on a popular Chinese messaging platform.
Law enforcement is increasingly improving and developing methods such as victim-
identification databases and data mining/analytics to improve forensic processes. However,
governments in the ASEAN region need a multi-pronged strategy that focuses on prosecutions,
raises awareness, and involves the private sector. Singapore developed the National Plan of
Action for 2012–15 which identifies a ‘4P’ strategy of prevention, prosecution, protection and
partnership.
Along with the exponential increase in people accessing the internet throughout Asia, digital
activism will develop and grow. There have been several advances in anti-human trafficking
responses, such as the US government’s pro-active policy of combatting human trafficking and
corporate social responsibility schemes. While most innovation in this field emanates from the
United States and Europe, many realise the need to adapt these technological advances to the
needs of people in Asia.
The Virtual Global Taskforce brings law enforcement agencies, NGOs and industry partners
together to protect children from online child abuse. In 2012 Operation Endeavour — an
Australian, UK, US and Filipino law enforcement effort through the Virtual Global Taskforce —
used online tools such as data mapping to identify areas in the Philippines where child abuse
material was transmitted. Operation Endeavour led to 29 international arrests, 11 of which were
in the Philippines — dismantling an organised crime group that had coordinated the live
streaming of on-demand child sexual abuse.
In October 2013, the Taken Campaign launched the first anti-trafficking mobile phone
application to mark Anti-Slavery Day in London. In 2013, an anti-trafficking mobile phone
application was developed by RedLight Traffic in the US. Along with the Polaris Project (a US-
based NGO), the app provides users with potential trafficking indicators and red flags to identify
victims, a 20-minute training exercise to recognise trafficking, an anonymous way to report
suspected cases to local authorities, and a sharing tool to establish a local community network
against human trafficking.
Also, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), UNODC and UNESCO joined forces in
March 2014 to promote a global campaign, ‘Your Actions Count — Be a Responsible Traveller’.
The campaign was launched with private sector support from Marriott International and Sabre
Holdings who will promote it to customers through their websites (Travelocity and
lastminute.com), online booking tools, their TripCase mobile app and GetThere booking tool.
These types of multi-stakeholder initiatives are sustainable and raise awareness — so are
particularly significant for the Asia-Pacific which is regarded as a source and destination area for
trafficked persons.
Several multi-stakeholder approaches in the US and Europe are using ICT to tackle human
trafficking through the use of online petitions, data mapping and awareness-raising activities. It
is difficult for law enforcement authorities and governments to tackle this threat alone.
Therefore, meaningful collaboration between a range of stakeholders and public-private
cooperation are essential to fight trafficking, and counter criminals’ increasing use of ICT in
Southeast Asia.
Alistair DB Cook and Caitríona H Heinl are research fellows with the Centre for Non-
Traditional Security (NTS) Studies and Centre of Excellence for National Security (CENS) at the
S Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University,
Singapore.
 Answer the following questions:

1. Was there progress in the fight to stop human trafficking after ASEAN signed the Declaration
Against Trafficking in Persons, Particularly Women and Children?

2. What is the percentage of child victims of human trafficking in the ASEAN Region?

3. How does the Internet contribute to the increased number of human trafficking cases? Do you
think that the Internet can be used as a tool to victimize people? Explain your answer.
Inside job? Senior citizen loses P159,000 via unauthorized online transfer

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.

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.

EXCL: Ilang depositor, nawalan ng pera sa online banking, ATM

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 from 1 to 4. 3 and 4 will be passing. 1 and 2 means the bank
has big problems," he said.
Answer the following questions:

1. How can you tell if someone is phishing on your account?

2. How did Mr. Malibiran lose his money in the bank? Narrate the incident.

3. Do you think online banking is still safe? How can you avoid becoming a victim of phishing?