THE BANKERS Association of the Philippines (BAP) and the Department of Justice (DoJ) are partnering for a response mechanism amid rising cybercrime incidents affecting lenders and consumers.

“This memorandum of understanding will facilitate the creation of a collective, coordinated and strategic cyber response that is crucial in this period of heightened cyber criminality,” the BAP said in a statement on Sunday.

The agreement will be signed on Feb. 4, Friday.

“The association believes that all stakeholders — such as the government, the banking industry, and the Filipino public — must work together to keep Filipinos safe and make cybercriminals pay for the crimes they have committed,” the BAP said.

BAP President Jose Arnulfo A. Veloso said the group lauds the DoJ and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for identifying the culprits behind the incident that affected BDO Unibank, Inc. clients in December.

Earlier this month, NBI said they caught five people involved in the hacking incident where funds of BDO clients were transferred to a UnionBank of the Philippines, Inc. account of a “Mark Nagoyo.” The NBI said three Filipinos and two Nigerians were part of the heist group.

“Their (NBI and DoJ) actions demonstrate that cybercriminals will never go unpunished for victimizing the Filipino banking public and stealing their hard-earned savings. We trust that the perpetrators of the scam and their victims will be afforded a just and speedy resolution,” Mr. Veloso said.

BDO earlier said they were processing the reimbursement claims of about 700 clients affected by the incident.

BDO President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Nestor V. Tan said they will ensure all cybercrime-related concerns of their clients will immediately be addressed.

“We continue to make investments and enhancements in our security systems to assure our banking clients will have a safe and secure banking experience,” Mr. Tan said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said they will complete their investigation into the BDO incident by the end of this month.

For her part, BAP First Vice-President and Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo asked financial consumers to remain vigilant in their online transactions.

“Suspicious messages should be immediately reported to the authorities. The banks have dedicated personnel to handle these incidents to ensure protection of our clients,” Ms. Borromeo said.

The NBI is also currently looking into the alleged hacking of the LANDBANK accounts of several teachers.

The state lender said their systems were not compromised and individual accounts of teachers were hacked by phishing, noting the bank is resolving the cases.

The BSP is developing a framework that will require banks to adopt strong fraud management systems and temporary freezes on funds to minimize losses from fraudulent activities. — LWTN

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