BI says Pinoys lured to work in scam hubs abroad

Bureau of Immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval said Wednesday that illegal gambling syndicates are trying to attract Filipinos to work in scam hubs abroad.

This was disclosed by Sandoval during a Palace press conference, saying these scam hubs have been rampant online following the Philippine government’s ban on illegal POGO operations.

“Since we already banned it here in the Philippines, mukhang may mga similar activities that are happening in other countries already, other Asian countries. Kaya po iyong ilang mga kababayan naman natin ang reverse, nabibiktima palabas ng bansa (some of our kababayans are being victimized by this) and we do not want that to happen that’s why we are trying to give out all the information about it kasi very rampant siya on social media,” Sandoval said.

“Kahit kayo po mismo, i-search ninyo sa social media, ang dami pong mga POGO work hiring abroad, mga ganoon po na ang offer ay pagkagaganda pero hindi po totoo, it’s early a scam hub,” she added.

(Even you, you can search on social media and you’ll see there’s a lot of POGO works that are hiring abroad, those offers were too good to be true, it’s early a scam hub.)

She said Philippine authorities have noticed the trend on scam hubs abroad in some ASEAN nations, including Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos.

“We have noticed a trend – Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos iyon po ang ilan sa mga bansa (those were the countries) that our kababayan go to, and we notice that they have POGO-like operations,” Sandoval said.

“But hindi limited ito dito sa mga bansang ito kasi sometimes many of our kababayan would transit from one Asian country to other Asian countries just to make it seem like it’s a regular vacation or a travel,” she added.

On November 5, 2024, President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. issued an executive order prohibiting Philippine Offshore Gaming, internet gaming, and other offshore gaming operations in the country.

Executive Order No. 74 states that the ban on POGOs and internet gaming licenses shall encompass illegal offshore gaming operations, license applications, license renewals, and cessation of operations. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News