MANILA – The influx of dummy Facebook accounts over the weekend could be a handiwork of groups or individuals who were against the controversial Anti-Terrorism Bill, according to Sen. Panfilo Lacson.
Lacson suspects the sudden surge of fake Facebook accounts may only be part of a “scare tactic” against the controversial anti-terrorism measure.
“It’s alarming in the sense that it may be part of scare tactics,” said Lacson, the chair of the Senate’s National Defense and Security committee, in an interview with CNN Philippines.
“For all we know, those against it are the ones spreading them, so that people may get scared, by dishing out disinformation,” the senator added.
Various universities around the country confirmed over the weekend that they received reports of fake and empty Facebook accounts bearing the names of their respective students and alumni.
Among those who complained to have fraudulent Facebook account were those who opposed the Anti-Terrorism Bill, which is now up for President Rodrigo Duterte’s signature.
Meanwhile, The Communicator, a student publication of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines-College of Communication, has reported that a student in the college received a threat from a fictitious Facebook account.
Malacañang said they will leave it up to the National Privacy Commission to look into the matter. It also warned those behind could be charged under the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
“Ilegal po ‘yang pag clone ng Facebook accounts. Dun sa mga may pakana niyan, mabuti pa ay humanap na lang kayo ng ibang gagawin,” Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a virtual press conference on Monday afternoon.
The Department of National Defense, for their part, launched an investigation on the emergence of fake Facebook accounts, which Defense chief Delfin Lorenzana described as a cause of alarm as it creates “discordant voices among the people.”
Philippine National Police chief Police General Archie Francisco Gamboa, on the other hand, tasked the Anti-Cybercrime Group to look into the matter as he urged the public to continue reporting to authorities about fake Facebook accounts.
The Department of Justice, meanwhile, said it has received a total of 112 reports from Facebook users with dummy accounts just hours after it launched an investigation on the emergence of fake accounts./PN
