The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) has flagged the growing threat of online lending applications (OLAs), with executive director Gilbert Cruz warning that their impact is more damaging than crimes linked to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) or online gambling.
Speaking at the MACHRA Balitaan forum, Cruz revealed that the PAOCC is currently handling around 15,000 cases involving victims of OLA-related harassment. Many were coerced into surrendering personal information—such as pay slips, contacts, and social media accounts—which were later weaponized when borrowers failed to pay on time.
“If victims fail to pay them, they will be harassed using their personal accounts, which they surrendered to online lending operators,” Cruz said. He added that these operators often use borrowers’ photos and contact lists to humiliate them, even contacting friends and coworkers. “Because of this, we even recorded incidents of suicide.”
Cruz noted that OLAs, much like the notorious “5-6” loan schemes, entice users with easy money but burden them with interest rates between 35% and 40%. Once the borrowers fall behind, some are subjected to online shaming through text, email, and social media—with some even targeted by manipulated AI-generated lewd videos.
So far, PAOCC has documented at least six suicide cases tied to such harassment. “While POGO crimes targeted foreign nationals, in the case of online lending apps, it is Filipinos against Filipinos,” Cruz stressed.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian echoed the alarm, stating that OLAs are deepening financial distress for many Filipinos already ensnared in online gambling. “They are addicted to online gambling and now exploited by online lending apps,” he said.
Gatchalian has filed a resolution calling for a Senate investigation into OLA operations, urging authorities to clamp down on illegal and abusive lending practices.
