PNP’s anti-cybercrime unit warns vs online loan apps

By Jennifer P. Rendon

“Get money instantly without documents. No refusal or inquiries. Rate 0% without guarantors. Apply loan without leaving the comforts of your home.”

Have you ever been tempted to grab offers of online loans?

Hold your horses first, the PNP Regional Anti-Cybercrime Unit 6 (RACU-6) advised.

This, after they received at least six complaints since last year relative to online loans.

Staff Sergeant Wilvin Go, RACU-6 investigator, said the complaints they received involved scam and debt shaming.

“Some complainants claimed they were asked to pay for a loan that they did not make. That’s a scam,” Go said.

On the other hand, some complainants admitted that they applied and received the loan amount.

After they failed to pay their obligations, the company threatened to shame them or even shamed them online by exposing their debts.

“And that’s still a crime, even if the person has not paid his financial obligations to you,” he said.

But since online crimes are hard to prove and to investigate, Go said they have yet to file a single case against any person or company.

Recently, a teacher from Nueva Valencia, Guimaras claimed that she was coerced into paying a loan that she did not incurred.

Christine Marie Jumilla, 37, of Barangay Concordia Sur, Nueva Valencia, claimed she has been receiving text messages from someone identifying herself as a certain Donnita Mae Nadara and demanding her to pay P8,800 loan she allegedly made.

The demand was made on August 29.

But Jumilla insisted not knowing Nadara or the Cash Pera Company based in Davao del Norte.

The sender allegedly threatened to expose her or have her friends know about her “unpaid loan.”

By August 30, the amount went up to P9,200.

The number used by Nadara could not be reached as of this writing.

Go said they only knew one company that is deemed legitimate in online loan application.

“So far, we only knew of Tala. The rest could be a scam,” he said.

The PNP RACU-6 has been coordinating with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in identifying the companies involved in the debt-shaming scheme and loan scam modus operandi.

Several months ago, the Department of Justice reiterated that harassing individuals who had taken a loan from online lenders is deemed illegal and punishable under existing laws.

The DOJ issued the statement following numerous complaints against online lenders that have resorted to online debt-shaming and other unfair practices in collecting debts.

The acts, the DOJ said, may be punishable me under Republic Act No. 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012), SEC Memorandum Circular No. 18, series of 2019, and under the Revised Penal Code.