PCO, CICC launch Hotline 1326 vs scams, deepfakes

MANILA, Philippines —  The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) yesterday signed an agreement with the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) to promote an application for scam and deepfake reporting and to form a task force to fight disinformation, especially in what it described as “bastardized” social media.

The memorandum of agreement involves the use of the eGovPH app’s e-Report in exposing scams, recognition of Hotline 1326 as the national anti-scam hotline, working with various stakeholders on scam and deepfake awareness and providing government news and updates through the eGovPH app.

CICC executive director Alexander Ramos said the effort aims to empower schools, institutions and other stakeholders to combat false information, support groups involved in fact-checking and media literacy and preserve the integrity of the upcoming elections.

Ramos said the application for detecting deepfakes would be distributed to accredited partners, including independent fact checkers.

The software, which was purchased for P2 million from Ensign Info Security during a recent exhibition in Singapore, can identify deepfake content within 30 seconds, he added.

“We currently have 500 licenses, and we want to increase it so that there will be more communities that can avail of this,” he added.

Hotline 1326, meanwhile, allows the public to send links to online materials that may contain scams or disinformation so they can be examined by regulators like the trade department and the Commission on Elections.

Ramos said a National Deepfake Task Force led by the PCO would also be formed to boost the anti-disinformation drive. The task force would be supported by other agencies, including the CICC, the information and communications technology department and the National Bureau of Investigation.