THE National Privacy Commission (NPC) has issued a call to individuals who may have been affected by unauthorized transactions on the GCash platform.
“We urge individuals who may have been affected by this incident to reach out to the NPC through info@privacy.gov.ph and provide relevant information to assist with our investigation,” the NPC said in a statement on Wednesday.
According to the agency, it received an e-mail from GCash on Nov. 11 stating that “there was no data leakage or personal data breach” in the incident, which involved unauthorized transactions.
“Although GCash has stated that there was no compromise of customer credentials or data in the incident, the NPC will still conduct an independent investigation in line with its mandate to administer and implement the Data Privacy Act of 2012,” said the NPC.
It said that the investigation will verify GCash’s reports and ensure the electronic wallet’s accountability in protecting users’ personal information.
However, the privacy body said that its authority is focused on the protection of personal data; thus, monetary concerns should be directed to the appropriate financial regulatory agency.
On Monday, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said that it would investigate the incident after several GCash users reported unauthorized deductions from their accounts.
The probe aims to identify possible vulnerabilities and review the e-wallet’s compliance with regulations and policies, the BSP said.
GCash said in a statement on Sunday that it had fixed the system issues that caused the incident.
“GCash has completed the necessary wallet adjustments for its affected users,” it said.
“Rest assured that customer accounts are safe, and customer account security will always be our top priority,” it added. — J.I.D. Tabile