THE number of cybercrimes and cyber-related offenses were “significantly reduced” due to the ban on the operation of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in his 240-page “President’s Report to the People.”
Marcos said that the number of cybercrimes dropped to 14,529 in 2024, from 21,300 in 2023.
In the first five months of the year or from January to May, he said the number was further cut to 4,604 cases.
“Our intensified crackdown against POGOs has yielded positive results in significantly reducing cybercrime and other cyber-related offenses. There had been a continuous decline in reported cybercrime cases,” he said in the report.
The President said policies to address the growing sophistication of cyber threats have also been crafted by the administration, through the National Cybersecurity Inter-Agency Committee, which has led to the arrest of cybercriminals.
He said data from the PNP also showed that it has successfully resolved 39,416 out of 48,670 cybercrime complaints, while 2,469 individuals were arrested for cybercrimes and 4,362 victims assisted.
Marcos, in his third state of the nation address (SONA) in 2024, ordered the shutdown of the POGO industry and banned the operation of offshore gaming firms in the country following reports that POGOs have become crime hubs for other criminal activities, such as money laundering, cybercrime, kidnapping, human trafficking, and drug trafficking.
