IN the Philippines, the shift toward digital financial services has grown pronounced, with a Visa report revealing that a significant 70 percent of Filipino consumers prefer app-based remittances. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas confirms this digital ascendancy, reporting that over 42 percent of retail transactions were conducted digitally by 2022. Escalating cyber risks have shadowed this digital transition.

However, this digital ascendancy has its challenges. A concerning statistic from Appdome's 2023 survey shows that 40 percent of people know someone who has been a victim of a cyberattack, with online scams costing Filipino consumers around P155 million over eight months.