The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has confirmed that personal information belonging to users of its online platforms was exposed in a data leak.

The SEC sent notices to affected account holders on 9 November. It said the exposed data includes full names, usernames, email addresses, mobile numbers, dates of birth, genders, addresses and Tax Identification Numbers.

The regulator has reported the incident to the National Privacy Commission (NPC).

The confirmation follows an advisory the SEC issued on 7 November. In it, the SEC said it had become aware of online reports of an alleged leak the day before.

At the time, it said it was investigating the matter while enforcing enhanced security measures and closer monitoring of its systems.

Advice for Affected Users

The SEC said it does not ask for passwords or security PINs.

Scammers often use leaked contact details in phishing attempts. Users should be cautious of any message claiming to be from the SEC that asks for such information.

Affected users can direct inquiries to the SEC’s Data Protection Officer, Oliver V. Chato.

Other Agencies Hit by Leak Claims

The SEC is one of several government agencies dealing with alleged data leaks this month. The Bureau of Internal Revenue is investigating a separate alleged leak of taxpayer data, Context.ph reported.

On 5 November, cybersecurity advocacy group Deep Web Konek reported a series of alleged breaches.

These involved government job portal PhilJobNet, the Office of the Vice President, the Presidential Commission on Good Government and the Department of Information and Communications Technology, among others, according to PhilstarTech.

The NPC said it would verify the reports. As of 6 November, it had not received breach notifications from the agencies named, Back End News noted.

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Philippines based on images by pvproductions via Magnific and the Securities and Exchange Commission via Facebook.