Filipinos can learn to spot online scams through a game included in Scam Ready ASEAN, a regional training program launched in the Philippines with support from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
The ASEAN Foundation-led program aims to teach 3 million people across Southeast Asia how to recognize, avoid, and respond to scams. Its Philippine launch took place at the BSP Head Office in Manila on Oct. 12.
“At the BSP, we believe that as digital finance becomes more accessible, it must also become safer. We are proud to do our part in building a more vigilant, more resilient, and truly Scam Ready ASEAN,” BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. said in a recorded video message.
The Scam Ready game allows users to practice identifying fraudulent schemes and making safer choices online. Alongside the game, the program plans to train 2,000 Master Trainers who will teach scam prevention in their communities and organizations.
In the Philippines, the Bank Marketing Association of the Philippines (BMAP) is also urging people to check information before clicking links, replying to messages, transferring money, or sharing personal details.
Its campaign, “Ang Mahal ma-Scam, i-scamcheck.ph Mo Muna,” was introduced at the same event.
“Fighting scams requires more than awareness. It requires action and collaboration,” BSP Deputy Governor Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in her keynote address. “Protecting consumers is a shared responsibility, and by working together, we can build stronger safeguards to protect Filipinos, their hard-earned savings, and the trust they place in our financial system.”
BMAP led the launch with the ASEAN Foundation and Google.org, in collaboration with the BSP. The event brought together regulators, banks, technology and telecommunications companies, law enforcement agencies, and consumer groups.