Coins.ph is warning users about rising digital fraud in the Philippines, as a recent report found that 84% of Filipino adults encountered a scam in the past year, up from 77% the year before.

The State of Scams Philippines 2026 report by the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA), produced with Mastercard and Gogolook, estimated annual scam losses at PHP 121.8 billion.

The figure is based on a survey of 1,160 Filipino adults, extrapolated to the national population, Philstar noted.

The report also found that 15% of respondents lost money or personal information that led to financial loss, yet only 4% reported a scam to the authorities, according to GASA.

E-wallets Become the Main Channel

Scammers are increasingly turning to digital wallets to receive stolen funds. Among victims who lost money, 73% said they sent it through e-wallets, up from 34% a year earlier. Bank and wire transfers fell to 12% from 36%, Back End News reported.

“Most scams don’t break into an account. They convince the account owner to open the door,” said Amira Alawi, Global Marketing Director at Coins.ph.

Four Schemes Coins.ph Flagged

Coins.ph highlighted four common schemes that rely on social engineering rather than hacking.

These include phishing and impersonation, where fake texts, emails and websites are used to steal passwords and one-time PINs, and fake customer support accounts on social media and messaging apps.

The others are investment scams promising guaranteed or unusually high returns, and task or employment scams that offer easy online work, often paid in crypto, before asking victims to deposit money.

“If someone guarantees your profit, that guarantee is a scam,” Alawi said.

Coins.ph also warned against lending, renting or selling verified e-wallet or bank accounts, which scammers use to move stolen funds.

Using financial accounts for scams carries penalties under the Anti-Financial Account Scamming Act (Republic Act No. 12010).

The company advised users never to share their OTPs, passwords or recovery phrases, and to report suspicious activity through its Help Center or the authorities.

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Philippines based on an image by creativeart via Magnific.