Being smart with smartphones

With the use of smartphones in the Philippines expected to at least double this year, largely because of the availability of more affordable models that the average Filipino can easily aspire for and buy, it’s high time that the government look into tightening the security of online shopping.

Already, the risk of getting involved in online fraud is high, what with the current inability of existing laws and regulations to adequately protect consumers and the inability of state regulators and police intelligence and apprehension arms to go after and apprehend crime perpetuators.

Even more established online buy-and-sell (or group buying) sites adopted policies that “protect” the consumer only after receiving widespread complaints about irregularities in trade postings like non-delivery of sold products, delayed shipping, and refusals for refund or exchange when the customer is not satisfied with the delivered product.

A customer can easily find himself futilely waiting for the delivery of something that was transacted through the site, and only after much follow up, will he realize that the payment given for “purchased” products has been lost to a cybercrime.

Then too, there are the other bigger atrocities involving the Internet, such as the lately publicized “sextortions” involving apparently Philippine-based Internet hackers that prey on privately posted videos or photos in social media sites.

Apparently, the extortionist, said to be a Filipino, tried to extort money from his intended victim by threatening to widely circulate nude photographs and videos that were mined from the foreigner’s “private” social media site. The victim had since committed suicide.

Commercialization

Studies are pointing to a bigger leap in online shopping patronage, as well as online banking access, because of the increasing use of simple software applications such as music downloading and streaming, getting directions, food delivery, taxi flagging services, and many others.

It does not help that telecommunication companies are quickly coming up with bundled service packages that encourage its users to trust and access a growing number of sites. This increasing familiarity with the Internet makes users more vulnerable to dubious sites.

Yes, commercialization indeed has its downside especially when there is no adequate protection for users from regulators that are playing catch-up in this fast-changing Internet-based environment.

The task of providing protection to users is made doubly difficult by the inadequate detection and tracking facilities of our cyberspace detectives, and the slow pace of apprehending officers to pin down and arrest the crime perpetuators.

Inactive sites

For example, the number of inactive buy-and-sell sites has been increasing by the day. There had been an unregulated proliferation a few years back because of the absence of control over the business credentials of the site hosts.

This becomes a quick opportunity for preying individuals to offer non-existent goods or services to an unsuspecting public. After asking and receiving the down or full payment from the product, the seller quickly disappears without completing the transaction.

Because of the absence or lack of government regulation over these online trading sites, the best protection that had been offered, and ironically by other well-meaning cyber citizens, is a watchlist that would help to identify unscrupulous individuals or companies.

Much like the sextortion case, protective measures are largely in the form of warnings to the public to not engage in conversations with strangers no matter how endearing, especially when dealing with the exchange of private information that could be misused by the other party.

In the case of the buy-and-sell sites, shouldn’t the government come up with a listing of active and trustworthy operators that the public can automatically refer to?

Sariling sikap

In the meantime, I’ve compiled some tips courtesy of our government regulators and some concerned citizens that could help avoid being trapped in dubious transactions, or even becoming prey to extortion activities. Think sariling sikap while we wait for government to get in the act.

1. Double- and triple-check the credibility of the other party that you meet and start talking to or transacting with on the Internet. If you cannot establish a credible link in two searches, better disengage.

A credible link means having one or two common friends in the case of social media channels, or seeing a stream of postings that are current (within the day) for trading sites.

If you see negative comments, disengage. Chances are there’s fire when you see smoke.

2. Never give away private information to anyone, especially if these can be easily shared over the Internet. This applies to photos or videos that show you in your more intimate self – unless of course you really want to gain exposure through notoriety.

This applies to giving away bank details, passwords and government identification numbers especially to email “alerts” that carry dubious addresses. Thoroughly check the identity of the sender. Better still, ignore requests that require you to key in personal information.

3. When transacting online, make sure to deal only with trusted sites. There’s a list of trusted sites on the Internet. You can download this and register them on the Trusted Sites list in your Internet security tab. Remember to update this list regularly.

Desktop PCs, by far, have better precautions for users using the Internet to shop or conduct financial transactions. It is also a safer medium. But smartphones are catching up on their security features.

A good rule to follow: if your desktop PC or laptop accepts the site as one that can be trusted, you can use the smartphone version. For added protection of your laptops or smartphones, always employ user identification precautions. It’s a deterrent to discourage thieves or someone who picks up a lost smartphone or laptop from gaining access to your personal information or files.

4. As a rule of thumb, always be extra cautious and alert when transacting on the Internet. Use smart passwords; commit them to your memory. Log out of online banking and even email sites. It’s better to be safe than sorry.

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Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 25th Floor, 139 Corporate Center, Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at [email protected]. For a compilation of previous articles, visit www.BizlinksPhilippines.net.