Landbank starts own inquiry on ‘phishing’
THE state-run Land Bank of the Philippines is currently in coordination with the Department of Education (Deped) for the list of teachers who were reportedly victimized through phishing.
In a statement over the weekend, the government bank said it is conducting its own investigation on the accounts of the teachers who have recently been victims of an online cyberattack.
The bank also said it is “welcoming” the impending investigation by the NBI, following a Department Order issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the NBI to immediately intervene on the matter.
“We will actively participate in this investigation and extend full cooperation to the NBI with the end in mind of further securing our depositors’ hard-earned money,” Landbank President and CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo said.
“We are also reaching out to the affected teachers and conducting an internal investigation on their complaints. In the meantime, we assure our clients and the general public that Landbank systems remain stable and secured,” Borromeo added.
Just last week, nongovernment group The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition claimed it received a number of reports that some teachers lost as much as P121,000 each from their Landbank accounts.
In the same statement, the government bank warned banking clients against linking old mobile phone numbers to their Landbank accounts.
“Part of the security measures [we are] implementing is the use of the client’s mobile number to receive One-time Passwords [OTPS] in authenticating digital financial transactions when using Landbank ’s mobile banking app, instead of email. Clients with outdated mobile phone numbers linked to their online banking accounts must update their phone number with Landbank,” the bank said.
“Landbank [is advising] the public to remain vigilant against phishing scams and all other forms of online banking fraud, and to refrain from opening suspicious emails, links and attachments, and sharing of account and personal information,” the staterun lender added.