As the world slowly returns to normal after the shock of the coronavirus pandemic, it’s time to take back all the lost time and all the moments. Businesses are undoubtedly going to be busier, and outdoor activities are going to be held again more often. We’re all returning to the people we were in 2019 – dynamic, bustling, and lively go-getters. The pandemic gave everybody time to reflect. And as we go out and return to normal, it’s time to also consider having an additional investment for the self, especially when it comes to prioritizing safety. Thankfully, insurance companies in the Philippines offer a wide range of personal accident insurance coverages. Personal Accident insurance, or PA insurance, provides the needed coverage when unexpected and injurious accidents occur. With the coverage, financial assistance and hospitalization benefits may be given and reimbursed, effectively cutting down hefty costs. All these, together with peace of mind, comes with being covered by PA insurance. Depending on your company of choice, lifestyle and needs, the following comprehensive packages are generally available: Individual PA, Family PA, Group PA, Auto Passenger PA, and Travel PA. General inclusions in PA policies may include coverage for accidental death, temporary and/or total and/or permanent disablement, and other medical expenses. Beneficiaries are paid on a lump sum basis, or by monthly income should it acts as a supplementary monthly income.

Your home is one of the greatest investments you will have in your lifetime. Not only does your home have sentimental value but more important, it also houses your crucial documents and most of your private assets as well. Unfortunate and unforeseen damages from fire accidents are unavoidable, but they are not always guaranteed to end up as final losses. How do you ensure that your home is protected and covered from direct loss, should perilous damages occur? Best for all your properties, there is only one answer: fire and property insurance. Fire insurance offered in the Philippines generally covers total or partial loss as a result of accidental fire and/or lightning. For an extended and more comprehensive insurance, optional coverages also include coverage for earthquakes, typhoons, floods, explosion from falling aircrafts, malicious damage, and robbery and burglary. These coverages help policy owners shoulder the hefty sums of rebuilding the physical premises of damaged homes or properties. It can be treated as a comfortable safety net - an investment which can be heavily relied on in times of damage and distress. Fire and property insurance also ensure peace of mind should the unanticipated occur. In a country like the Philippines, unexpected perils often happen, in the form of calamities. Is it not only natural that investments are also invested on, through coverage and protection?

A new project to develop climate-smart insurance for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the Philippines will be put in place with the support of Asian Development Bank (ADB). It will be administered through the Asia-Pacific Climate Finance Fund (ACliFF). The climate-smart insurance project will be the first project under the Vulnerable Twenty Group’s (V20) new Sustainable Insurance Facility (SIF). The project will establish a viable and sustainable business case and model for climate and disaster insurance for the Philippines MSMEs. This will also explore solutions that address the gender-specific impacts of disasters affecting MSMEs. The programme outcomes will contribute toward the InsuResilience Global Partnership’s Vision 2025 target to cover 500m poor and vulnerable individuals against climate and disaster shocks by 2025. MSMEs remain underserved and in some instances, unreached by insurance markets, leaving them highly vulnerable to climate and disaster shocks. ADB sustainable development and climate change department director general Bruno Carrasco said, “Supporting the climate and disaster resilience of MSMEs not only supports the resilience of the overall economy but indeed the business owners, employees and the communities they serve, many of whom are vulnerable and also low-income sections themselves.” ACliFF is a multi-donor trust fund managed by ADB. It was established with the financial support from the Government of Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, whose funding will support the climate-smart insurance programme. Government of Germany’s federal ministry of economic cooperation and development director general Jürgen Zattler said, “Small enterprises frequently lack access to effective risk management tools, such as climate risk insurance, to protect against climate and disaster shocks. Dr Zattler said, “Promoting insurance access and adoption among small enterprises provides financial protection that helps to safeguard development gains and avoid reliance on adverse and less effective coping mechanisms.” Addressing the impacts of extreme weather events is one of four priority areas for the financial risk management products supported by ACliFF. The fund will also explore future collaboration with the V20’s SIF in other countries of Asia and the Pacific. Source: asiainsurancereview.com

There are uncertainties in climate models and its data output, but there is mounting evidence that points to more frequent or intense heavy rainfall episodes in some regions across Asia and Europe, said Aon in its latest report. The real-time climate change report, published last week, explored three recent examples of perils that show the fingerprints of climate change: Tropical cyclones, floods in Europe and Asia and wildfires in the US. In the past decade alone, weather-related disasters have resulted in nearly $3tn in economic damage. This accounts for 85% of total natural peril losses. These losses include direct impacts from such perils as tropical cyclones, flooding, and wildfires - all of which are demonstrating changing behaviour that is putting more lives, livelihoods and property at risk. Aon estimated that only 31% of these losses have been covered by insurance. Weather-related costs are expected to rise further as events become more frequent or intense, people continue to move into attractive, yet vulnerable areas and the price of daily life becomes more expensive. Higher temperatures, more rain One of the core principles of atmospheric science is that warmer air can hold more moisture. As the world has continued to warm at an accelerating rate in recent decades, this has also coincided with more extreme precipitation and subsequent flood events. Two highly anomalous 2021 flood events occurred in Western Europe and Asia. In both instances, the local insurance industry in Germany and China cited the highest natural disaster event pay-outs on record. There was an historic volume of rainfall that fell in Zhengzhou, China (Henan Province) in mid-July, there was even more focus on the significant protection gap which exists in the country. On 20 July alone, Zhengzhou recorded 612.9mm of rain. This compares to its total annual average rainfall of 640.8mm. Catastrophic flooding occurred that led to more than 552,000 insurance claims being filed. Despite the local Henan insurance industry citing a record $1.9bn in insured loss from the event – the costliest weather event on record for Chinese insurers – it still represented less than 10% of the overall economic loss. In the same month, across some parts of Germany and elsewhere in western and central Europe, nearly two times the annual July rainfall average fell in a 72 to 96-hour period that overwhelmed many rivers and streams. There has been vigorous discussion regarding the role of climate change in both events, said Aon. The tremendous volume of rainfall that occurred was consistent with what scientific research continues to highlight as expected with warming in the oceans and atmosphere. Warmer temperatures act as an accelerant to the evaporation process – often over the oceans or other large bodies of water – then place more water/moisture into the atmosphere. Actions must be taken One important step to communicate rainfall and flood risk is via return periods – or how likely such an event is expected to occur. For example: A 100-year event means there is a 1% chance of such an event occurring at a location in any given year. It does not mean that it will be another 100 years until another such event happens again. The increased influence of climate change suggests that what is considered a one-in-100-year event today may becoming a one-in-75 or one-in-50-year event in the future. An understanding of this likely shift in event occurrence frequency is highly important when developing risk mitigation and adaptation plans. Such analysis will only enhance the essential need for more regularly updated flood mapping and flood risk tools. Source: asiainsurancereview.com

Ms Yvonne Yuchengco is the vice chairperson of Malayan Insurance Company, one of the largest non-life insurance companies in the Philippines. She led the company for 25 years as its president and CEO before taking up her current role in July 2019. Under her leadership, Malayan Insurance has consistently maintained pole position in the market in terms of GWP. Women’s empowerment has been a subject close to her heart and she was instrumental in drawing up a partnership between Malayan Insurance and the IFC in 2018, for a gender-based programme with the objective of increasing women’s access to risk mitigation and financial protection solutions in the Philippines. Ms Yuchengco’s passion for innovation and to address women’s needs saw Malayan Insurance launch the ‘We Women’ programme, which offers innovative non-life insurance and lifestyle solutions to women in the Philippines. The programme ensures that women have access to the assistance they need for the challenges they face as entrepreneurs, professionals and as heads of families. The programme today encompasses a wide range of activities that help women cope with various life challenges. The programme’s website shares motivational and inspiring content to further empower women. With her vision to create a safe and gender sensitive society, Ms Yuchengco organised a number of gender sensitivity training workshops for employees and agents of Malayan Insurance. These workshops, apart from helping attendees understand and respect the role of women in society, also focused on the contribution and value of the ‘We Women’ programme. For its gender sensitivity training initiative, Malayan Insurance won the ‘Best Good Company Initiative’ award at the Tokio Marine Insurance Group 2019 Asian Awards in 2019. Under her leadership, Malayan Insurance has been supporting women groups that work in creating a better world for women in the Philippines. Ms Yuchengco strongly backs the government’s initiatives towards financial inclusion and gender-based programmes and remains passionate and committed to making an insurance-led difference in the lives of others.

It was once again time to honour the best-of-the-best of the Asian insurance industry at the 25th Asia Insurance Industry Awards 2021 last night. Post-pandemic green shoots are emerging across the world, yet uncertainty remains. Keeping in view the restrictions that are still in place, the awards ceremony was held virtually for the second year running. The slick online ceremony saw 17 players from the Asian insurance and risk management industry recognised for their sterling performance during 2020 in spite of the pandemic upheaval. The year 2020 was entirely focused on how the industry could deliver the best experience to its customers by adopting digital — and most of the entries for the 25th AIIA awards this year spoke about the digital achievements of the players. The Technology Initiative of the Year title went to AXA Hong Kong and Macau. The company adopted AI and NLP technology to enhance the efficiency of its customer communication and service management. Go Digit, the winner of the Digital Insurer of the Year award, showed that technology-backed solutions can be scaled and sustained to make insurance simple for customers. The InsurTech of the Year award winner CoverGo’s fully configurable, modular, no code insurance platform helped open up more channels for under-served market segments in the region and beyond. Innovation of the Year award went to HSBC Life (International) Hong Kong for a new platform that offers a first-in-market digital policy value projection facility and enables customers to view real-time projected values of their policies anytime and anywhere. HSBC Life was the winner in this category the year before. Winner of the Broker of the Year award for 2021, Prudent Insurance Brokers, has achieved sustained growth in a highly competitive market thus reflecting the trust and confidence that customers have in the company. Mandiri AXA General Insurance emerged as the General Insurer of the Year for 2021 with its omni-channel claim service that ensured an exceptional claim experience across multiple protection solutions. This and more innovations enabled the company to register over 40% increase in gross weighted premium in 2020 compared to 2019. The Life Insurer of the Year award winner Cathay Life Insurance, in keeping with the digital and financial technology trends, initiated its ‘digital transformation plan’, which fully upgraded its digitised service processes for customers. It was also the first insurance player to launch the industry's first ‘insurance service carbon footprint project’. Winner of the General Reinsurer of the Year award Swiss Re worked to propel the Asian insurance industry forward. It contributed much towards automation, digitalisation and developing minimum data standards to create more operational efficiency throughout the insurance value chain in Asia. RGA Reinsurance Company, the winner of the Life Reinsurer of the Year, demonstrated its capacity to surmount major challenges and its resiliency as it worked together with Asian communities in a pandemic-struck world. The life reinsurer introduced several healthcare covers in Asia that deal with very specific issues for the different Asian markets. Service Provider of the Year award for 2021 went to PERILS. During the pandemic, the company delivered on its market commitment on multiple fronts — opening new markets in Southeast Asia and improving natural catastrophe understanding through the publication of detailed loss information on recent major losses. Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF), winner of the Educational Service Provider of the Year award for 2021, adopted new ways of working in 2020 to support the learning and professional development needs of its members. It put into use technologies and processes in all its activities to enhance user experience. AIA Singapore, the winner of the Health Insurer of the Year award, established direct partnerships with the medical community to manage healthcare costs together and ensure treatments are in line with the established norms. It went above and beyond the industry recommendations and provided the customers with more value and choice. Lifetime Achievement Award winner Bajaj Allianz General Insurance MD and CEO Tapan Singhel is a multi-faceted insurance personality with over 30 years in the industry. Mr Singhel has built up the organisation to where it is today. Customer obsession and passion to do good for the people drives Mr Singhel. Winner of the Woman Leader of the Year award Ms Yvonne Yuchengco is passionate about women’s empowerment and works relentlessly to increase women’s access to risk mitigation and financial protection solutions in the Philippines. She has been instrumental in the launch of ‘We Women’ programme, which offers innovative non-life insurance and lifestyle solutions to women in the Philippines. Young Leader of the Year award winner Mr Sythan Prou of Manulife Cambodia has been a great inspiration for many in Cambodia, with his professional and personal successes. Mr Prou will continue to create significant impact on insurance, legal, educational and local communities in Cambodia. Ms Maria Victoria A Tan, winner of the Corporate Risk Manager of the Year award for 2021, took up the challenges brought up by the pandemic as an opportunity and ensured that risk management and sustainability are adhered to in her organisation. She also continued to focus on climate-related risks and sensitised the senior management on this very vital issue. Cathay Life Insurance emerged as the winner of the Sustainability Award of the year with its adoption of principles for responsible investment. It incorporated these into its investment processes and supported industries that are conducive to sustainable development. The AIIA, organised by Asia Insurance Review and supported by RIMS, are the premier awards of Asia with a set of clearly defined criteria and a transparent judging process. A panel of 26 distinguished judges were involved in the assessment of the nominations this year. The results were independently audited by KPMG. Sponsors this year include AM Best, HSBC Life, ManageMy, Medix, MSIG, Muang Thai Life, Munich Re, SCOR and Swiss Re. For more information on the awards, please contact priscilla@asiainsurancereview.com or sandy@asiainsurancereview.com or visit the AIIA Awards website. Source: asiainsurancereview.com

Glasgow, 9 November 2021: The Vulnerable Twenty Group of Finance Ministers (V20) — comprising 55 climate vulnerable economies with a combined population of 1.4 billion people — reached one of their key milestones during a high level event today, and launched the V20 Sustainable Insurance Facility (SIF). The high level meeting was jointly convened at the sidelines of COP26 by the V20, the UN Environment Programme’s Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI), the Munich Climate Insurance Initiative (MCII) and the G20+ and V20-led InsuResilience Global Partnership. According to the latest IPCC report from August 2021, severe climate impacts, originally thought to be more long term, will materialize much sooner than expected. Climate change is now in a constant state of acceleration and this can only spell economic and financial disruption and destruction while leaving behind devastation for the world’s most climate vulnerable developing countries, and are beginning to impact developed countries. Announcing the launch of the SIF, H.E. Brenson Wase, Minister of Finance of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, member of the V20 Troika and Co-Chair of InsuResilience highlighted that “the SIF has come a long way” and how “the need for comprehensive and climate-smart insurance solutions for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) has first been highlighted in 2017, at our V20 Regional Consultation in the Asian Development Bank in Manila.” According to Minister Wase, the V20-led SIF will now be operationalized as a Project Pipeline Facility and represents “the first vulnerable country-led implementation mechanism in this space to date.” He also specifically thanked the SIF’s technical partners, including MCII and the Asian Development Bank, and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Development and Cooperation (BMZ) for being the first G20+ member of the InsuResilience Global Partnership that has publicly confirmed its support. Dr. Maria Flachsbarth, Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany emphasized that “Germany is pleased to support the V20-led Sustainable Insurance Facility starting in 2021, as it will enable V20 countries to submit tailor-made project proposals to better protect small enterprises against extreme weather events.” The SIF is a Project Pipeline Development Facility which will assist the members of the V20 in scoping the financial protection needs of MSMEs in the context of climate change, and in facilitating concept and proposal development for submission to risk financing vehicles. As such, the SIF aims to mobilize international financial and technical assistance, with the objective of stimulating climate-smart insurance offerings by domestic and regional insurers to protect MSMEs and the people that rely on them. The overall goals include building local and regional insurance markets to improve risk sharing and absorb financial shocks, developing resilient business models, and freeing up public and private resources for investment in resilience and growth. In V20 countries, MSMEs contribute between 20 and 70 per cent of GDP, constitute more than 80 per cent of all businesses, and contribute to the countries’ export revenues. Vulnerable developing countries suffer from a 90 per cent protection gap for climate risks and non-life insurance penetration in V20 economies, usually indicative of the degree to which private sector is covered, mostly lies below one or between one to two percent. MSMEs and cooperatives aggregate large population parts and thereby provide the potential to reach many people — owners, employees or small, family-owned businesses — directly or indirectly with insurance. Moreover, and as emphasized by Mr. Amal Krishna Mandal Joint Secretary, Economic Relations Division, Ministry of Finance, Bangladesh, the SIF is intended to help countries “protect their asset base, secure supply chains and maintain output and price stability in line with a future-proof economy as set out in Bangladesh’s Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan.” Together with the recently announced strategic collaboration on open access to risk analytics between the V20 and the Insurance Development Forum (IDF), the SIF is sought to address gaps in the current disaster risk finance architecture and add to a more strategic and systematic approach of protecting economies from climate risk. Over the course of 2022, the SIF will now be operationalized through a dedicated Project Office, hosted by the UN Environment Programme’s Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI) Initiative — the largest collaboration between the UN and the insurance industry — and supported by the MCII. The tasks of the SIF Project Office will focus on developing project concept notes and proposals under the leadership of V20 Finance Ministries in line with the five SIF Action Areas; the identification of interested implementing partners to translate such proposals into action; their submission to financing vehicles dedicated to addressing disaster risk; and accompanying in-country implementation in an advisory capacity. Butch Bacani, who leads the PSI at the UN Environment Programme, host of the SIF Project Office, welcomes the new initiative as “The creation of the V20 Sustainable Insurance Facility is a clarion call for leadership, determination and innovation from all actors to ensure that adaptation and resilience cease to be the forgotten half of the climate equation as we strive to achieve a just transition to a net-zero emissions economy.” Yet, building domestic insurance markets in parallel to strengthening MSMEs’ demand for insurance through targeted financial and climate risk advisory as envisioned by the SIF will be no simple task. Minister Wase, who also commended MCII, UNEP’s PSI Initiative and InsuResilience for their continued support, underscored that “we must accelerate action at an unprecedented pace.” Over the coming months further synergies with additional potential partners, including the US and the UK which also reflected upon the value of the SIF during the event, will be explored. While completing the set-up of the SIF Project Office in 2022, the V20 will further expand SIF activities across Asia-Pacific, including to Fiji, Bangladesh and the Marshall Islands. Simultaneously, the V20 will also bring the SIF to V20 members from Africa and the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean as well as build collaboration with relevant regional actors, including multilateral development banks, and other risk financing vehicles such as the World Bank IFC’s Global Index Insurance Facility (GIIF). Other organizations that attended the SIF event and expressed preparedness to collaborate include the African Risk Capacity, the InsuResilience Solutions Fund, Global Parametrics, ICEA LION, and Swiss Re. Such inclusive and widespread collaboration is expected to foster regional learning and mobilize finance to those who need it the most. As highlighted by Mr. Sabiti Fred, National and Technical Advisor on Environment and Climate Change, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Rwanda, there is a need to “better streamline our efforts by linking the international financial protection agenda more strongly with ongoing efforts around strengthening financial inclusion and access to credit for households and businesses.” Ultimately, investing in the resilience of the most vulnerable is not only an urgent humanitarian need. It is also a sensible strategy for building a more resilient global economy in today’s highly interconnected world. Applauding the efforts of the V20, H.E. Kwaku Afriyie, Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ghana, summarized that “bringing down global greenhouse gas emissions to the 1.5-Centigrade limit of the Paris Agreement is urgent for our survival, and the accelerating of climate-fueled impacts and disasters means that we need adaptation and risk management strategies. Key to the success of the two is climate risk data and financing, including for resilient investment and financial protection”. ABOUT Formed in 2015, the V20 Group of Finance Ministers is a dedicated cooperation initiative of economies systematically vulnerable to climate change. It is currently chaired by the People’s Republic of Bangladesh. The V20 membership stands at 55 economies including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Colombia, Comoros, Costa Rica, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominican Republic, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Fiji, the Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Kenya, Kiribati, Lebanon, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Morocco, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Palau, Palestine, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Samoa, Saint Lucia, Senegal, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Tunisia, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Viet Nam, Yemen. For more information, please visit: www.v-20.org/ Contact Persons For more information, please contact: V20 Sara Ahmed, Finance Advisor, V20: sara.ahmed@v-20.org Nabiha Shahab, Media Relations, V20: media@v-20.org UNEP Diana Diaz, Programme Supervisor, UNEP’s Principles for Sustainable Insurance Initiative: diana.diazcastro@un.org Sally Wootton, Communications Lead, UNEP’s Finance Initiative: sally.wootton@un.org MCII Viktoria Seifert, Manager – Disaster Risk Finance & Policy, Munich Climate Insurance Initiative: seifert@ehs.unu.edu

A Webinar Series happening this November 12 & 15, 2021 at 10:00AM to 12:00NN via Zoom. To register click here.

Speaker: Engr. Henry Penarubia

When a former official of the LTO reaches out to squeal on the LTO, I can’t help but listen, especially when the person’s report or “sumbong” confirms a payola system in “some” LTO offices in Metro Manila and the fact that other current LTO officials have heard of those “rumors” and allegations of corruptions. A week or so ago, a friend of mine connected me with a former LTO official who wanted to report what he considered as an intolerable level of corruption, where two LTO officials from two different offices reportedly collect a daily “tong” from stencil aides, vendors and runners (fixers) in their area of operations. According to the former official, the two officials collect as much as P1,000 to P1,500 each daily from the small people who eke out a living helping car owners register their vehicles or do the leg work for them. This is allegedly all part of a scheme where those who pay the “tong” get their share or “rebate” from the mandatory TPL or Third-Party Liability insurance that they bring into the agency concerned. These TPL policies are often bought on-site and presumably gives an incentive to people who bring in customers. Those who do not pay the tong or meet the weekly quota don’t get any rebates from TPL policies they sell. Sadly, the little people can’t complain because their primary concern is to make a living inside the LTO compound and don’t want to be kicked out or blacklisted, so they went to the ex-LTO official. When I asked around, it seems that these stories have made the rounds in LTO circles recently except at the office of the LTO chief. This practice is apparently not as isolated as I imagined it to be, which explains why people have not openly talked about it. It also explains why in spite of the LTO’s claims that they have pushed out “fixers,” people are still approached in several LTO districts. But as far as the former LTO official was concerned, he could not stomach the idea that a couple of his former associates would stoop so low and take a cut from people who barely made a living. From what I know the “sumbong” was brought to the attention of Regional Director Clarence Guinto, who has called in people for “interview.” While the Ex-LTO official’s heart bleeds for the little people, I on the other hand would suggest to the LTO and perhaps members of Congress and the Senate to investigate the backyard industries where millions are made from TPL commissions and stenciling requirements that are so out-dated and accomplishes nothing since VIN numbers and engine numbers are clearly visible and since registration of carnap vehicles hardly occur, given it is more profitable to chop up stolen vehicles for parts. I guess the reason all these requirements are there is because it is an LTO backyard industry! * * * In case you ever find yourself going to a Globe store to request for a new SIM card or SIM replacement or subscribe with their various mobile services, chances are you will discover two new things that have recently been introduced to increase customer security and protection. After riding the tiger due to the “Identity Theft” story we published in this column, we were informed by Miss Kiss Ekong, the head for Retail Sales Operations for Globe Philippines, during her guesting on our program AGENDA that their company has decided to immediately adopt the two suggestions that we put forward to help reduce mobile-based identity theft or fraud, namely photo or image capture of all Globe customers that will be included in their customer profile and security reference and a 24- to 48-hour cooling period before the telco acts on a request for SIM card replacement or stolen phone reports. The photo on file and stored by Globe will be readily available to all their stores in the event that such requests or questionable transactions pop-up. On the other hand, the 24- to 48-hour cooling period will prevent the automatic cut off of an existing line or take over by SIM swap criminals as well as give Globe enough time to contact their subscriber or track and investigate a phone reported as stolen. We also had cyber security analyst Art Samaniego on the program, who commented that the 24- to 48-hour cooling period was actually used by authorities in Mozambique to stop widespread SIM swap scams and that it was very effective. So, if the people at your local Globe office asks to take your picture, please smile for the camera and bear in mind it is meant to protect your interest and your identity! Still on the topic of scams, I received a letter from one of our readers “Ms. Flor” about how their email messages were hacked and how hackers had altered certain email addresses to make it appear that Ms. Flor’s company was dealing with the intended party they were doing business with. The hackers, it turns out, were part of a larger group that had targeted government emails and suppliers. Unlike the credit card criminals, these recent groups focused on people with small transactions, small amounts between vendors or suppliers and buyers. The strategy is that people are less cautious with a few hundred dollars or euros than they would be if the amounts involved thousands of dollars or euros. Sadly, some businesses also don’t bother to go after the criminals because it would cost them more to do so. The diversion of small amounts is also less likely to trigger an alarm in most banks until it’s too late and, last but not least, hijacking or phishing is easier and less risky than undertaking the two-pronged identity theft that we featured last week. Nonetheless, after the articles came out, we have been receiving a steady stream of complaints from people wanting to share their horror stories with telcos and different banks. Please protect yourself. Source: philstar.com