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MANILA — The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center said Wednesday it was monitoring various online marketing platforms in a bid to prevent minors from accessing deadly weapons.
The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) earlier said that the knife used by a 14-year-old student to fatally stab his 13-year-old schoolmate inside Las Piñas National High School was allegedly purchased online.
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CICC Executive Director Undersecretary Renato “Aboy” Paraiso said they have an ongoing partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, which were given access to their threat monitoring center tools.
“Mino-monitor ho natin itong online marketing pages at saka mga platforms. Kailangang-kailangan pong mag-comply sila strictly with ‘yung Internet Transactions Act natin,” he said in an interview with state-run media PTV.
Paraiso added that the CICC was coordinating with the National Bureau of Investigation and the PNP-Anti-Cybercrime Group for swift action against online sale of illegal items flagged by the trade department.
“Hindi lang ho natin pinapatigil ‘yung mga pages na ‘to, but again, the whole of government wants really na mapigilan ‘to at the source na mahuli natin ‘tong mga ‘to at saka mapanagot,” he added.
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Asked about minors faking their age to access social media, the CICC head said they would discuss with the Department of Education to advise schools to find alternative online platforms being used in teaching instructions such as those with parental controls.
This, as he noted that he had expressed to Meta -- which operates popular social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram -- an across-the-board ban for minors aged 13 and below.
“Naranasan ko rin ‘yung ibang magulang tumatawag sa CICC gaya ng isang kaibigan natin, tumawag, na-block ‘yung page ng mga anak nila na ginagamit sa school kasi below 13 pa ‘yung anak. So, this is a conversation we constantly have,” Paraiso said.
“Dapat po kasama dun sa ating pag-uusap at magiging pag-uusap with DepEd, is kailangan abisuhan ‘yung mga schools na itong mga platforms na ‘to, may age restriction. So hindi nila ‘to gamitin dapat para gawin ‘yung curriculum as a platform for teaching,” he added.
The official further emphasized that apart from government policies, parents should guide their children to ensure safe and proper internet use.
"Iyon iyong sinasabi siguro nila na parang, 'Ay, nandiyan naman ang pamahalaan, nandiyan naman ang gobyerno para bantayan.' Hindi ho namin kayo pinapalitan bilang magulang, kailangan bantayan ninyo pa rin iyong mga anak ninyo, kailangan gabayan ninyo pa rin iyong mga anak ninyo; kami naman ho aagapay sa inyo sa pagpapanatili ng internet safety natin," Paraiso said.
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