Police stations to have ‘cybercops’

CEBU, Philippines — Apart from its cybercrime unit, the Police Regional Office (PRO)-7 will assign “cybercops” in police stations to investigate crimes committed on the internet.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Ace Pelare, PRO-7 spokesperson, said they have upgraded their capabilities as a response to the challenge in handling crimes that are perpetrated over the internet.

To better equip the personnel dedicated to crime on the internet, there is also an ongoing training for them on responding to and investigating internet crimes.

"Naa na ‘tay cyber response team that are deployed in provinces and we have an ongoing training sa atong nga kapulisan para i-upgrade ang ilang level of technical expertise sa pag-investigate sa cybercrime offenses," Pelare said.

He said at least two well-trained cybercops will be assigned in police stations to accommodate offenses and complaints relative to online offenses.

Pelare said only complicated and bigger online cases would be forwarded to the cybercrime unit of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

He appealed for internet users to exercise due diligence and institute precautionary measures so as not to fall victim to online crime perpetrators.

"Offers that are too good to be true, these should be considered as not true. So kung naay mo-offer ninyo diha klaro kaayong scam, of course, do not fall prey to this kind of manipulation," Pelare said. — (FREEMAN)