By: Atty. Gregorio B. Austral, CPA
The Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA) of 2024
The recently enacted Republic Act No. 12010 or the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA) seeks to protect the public from cybercriminals and criminal syndicates who target Financial Accounts or lure Account Owners into becoming accessories or perpetrators of fraudulent activities. The State shall undertake measures to protect all persons from cybercrime schemes by regulating the use of Financial Accounts and preventing their use in fraudulent activities.
What is Financial Account Scamming?
Section 4 of the AFASA provides that the following acts shall constitute Financial Account scamming:
(a) Money Muling Activities. — A person performing any of the following acts for the purpose of obtaining, receiving, depositing, transferring, or withdrawing proceeds that are known to be derived from crimes, offenses, or social engineering schemes shall be considered as a money mule:
(1) Using, borrowing or allowing the use of a Financial Account;
(2) Opening a Financial Account under a fictitious name or using the identity or identification documents of another;
(3) Buying or renting a Financial Account;
(4) Selling or lending a Financial Account; or
(5) Recruiting, enlisting, contracting, hiring, utilizing or inducing any person to perform the acts mentioned in items 1 to 4 of this subsection.
(b) Social Engineering Schemes. — A social engineering scheme is committed by a person who obtains sensitive identifying information of another person, through deception or fraud, resulting in unauthorized access and control over the person’s Financial Account, by performing any of the following acts:
(1) Misrepresenting oneself as acting on behalf of an Institution, or making false representations to solicit another person’s sensitive identifying information; or
(2) Using electronic communications to obtain another person’s sensitive identifying information.
(c) Economic Sabotage. — The prohibited acts under Section 4 (a) and (b) shall be considered as economic sabotage when committed under any of the following circumstances:
(1) By a group of three (3) or more persons conspiring or confederating with one another;
(2) Against three (3) or more persons individually or as a group;
(3) Using a mass mailer; or
(4) Through human trafficking.
Moreover, Section 5 further defines the following also as offenses under the AFASA:
(a) Willfully aiding or abetting in the commission of any of the offenses enumerated under Section 4;
(b) Willfully attempting to commit any of the offenses enumerated under Section 4;
(c) Opening a Financial Account under a fictitious name or using the identity or identification documents of another; or
(d) Buying or selling a Financial Account.
(To be continued in the next issue)
(Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (AFASA), Republic Act No. 12010, [July 20, 2024], cdasiaonline.com)