Hackers paraded in new photo-ops

President Arroyo resumed her photo-op sessions with criminal suspects yesterday, this time presenting three hackers, whose recent arrest represents the first major strike against violators of the e-commerce law.

At Camp Crame, the President hailed the arrest of Marion Laquindanum and Jordanian brothers Mahmoud and Al Nuesir, arrested last week for hacking into the systems of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) and some banks.

Authorities said the trio amassed some 100 million from their illegal activities.

Mrs. Arroyo said this was a big step in her campaign against white-collar crimes, which started with the arrest of the culprits in the multi-million tax diversion scheme at the Land Bank of the Philippines.

Senior Superintendent Danilo Florentino, head of the Eastern Police District-District Intelligence and Investigation Division (EPD-DIID), said PLDT sought their help after noticing huge losses in revenues due to long distance and cellular phone calls from unknown callers.

Police said the hackers allegedly tap into the company’s system to be able to make unauthorized calls. Once access is gained, they lure clients by promising value-added features for their telephone units.

Florentino said the suspects offer clients international telephone connections for only P12 to P14 a minute, almost 50 percent less than prevailing international call rates.

"The investigation started as early as January this year when PLDT forwarded its complaint. They assisted us in the technical aspect of the investigation that led to identifying the telephone numbers of the suspects," he said.

The Jordanians will be charged with violation of immigration laws and all three will be charged under a law against unauthorized entry into electronic communications systems. — With Rey Arquiza