Second Update: GCash Releases Statement on Unauthorized Transactions Raised by Users on Social Media
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- Unauthorized transactions on GCash accounts, involving transfers to specific EastWest Bank and AUB accounts, have alarmed users.
- Several victims, including popular video creator and film director Chad Kinis, have reported significant losses due to these illegal transactions.
- GCash has not yet released an official statement, but as of 10:45 am May 8, the app is back online after almost eight hours under maintenance mode.
[Update on May 9 at 11:50 am] Gilda Macquilan, Vice President for Corporate Communications at GCash, sent a statement to ANC:
We are still communicating with our partner banks, but what we would like to say is that there is no fund lost. And to those who are inconvenienced, the amount (lost) will reflect on their accounts.
[Update on May 9, 2023 at 11:30 am] GCash releases the following statement:
Some customers may have experienced a deduction in their GCash account yesterday. We extended our scheduled maintenance to investigate and determined that no hacking occured.
Any deduction from a Gcash account will be adjusted before 3pm today. We wish to further assure customers that their funds remain safe and secure. We would also like to remind customers never to share their OTP and MPIN.
Original article follows:
A user by the name of frii14 recently shared unauthorized transactions on their GCash account on Reddit, with a staggering ₱66,000 stolen and transferred to an EastWest Bank account ending in 5239. The transfers were separated by just one minute, and the Reddit user raised questions about the security measures in place to stop such transactions from happening.
Concerns Among GCash Users
The user’s story has caught the attention of netizens, revealing that they are not alone in experiencing such incidents. All this, while GCash has reportedly been undergoing maintenance since midnight, causing concern among its users. (Update, as of May 9, 2023, 10:45 am PHT, GCash is back online.)
Several individuals have taken to social media to report unauthorized transactions involving transfers to specific EastWest Bank and Asia United Bank Corporation (AUB) accounts.
- Read more: GCash Load Now Available in 21 Countries
Unauthorized GCash Transactions Reported on Social Media
Actor Chad Kinis, who boasts a social media following of 3 million, also fell victim to these illegal transactions. Kinis’ GCash account was left with a mere ₱85 after multiple unauthorized transfers occurred; Kinis highlighted transfers of ₱1,536 pesos, ₱2,356 pesos, and ₱47,364 pesos. A total of ₱72,461 was stolen from Kinis’ account.
In addition to the EastWest Bank account, another AUB account, ending in 3008, has been cited in connection with the unauthorized transactions.
At the time of writing, GCash has not issued any official statement or announcement concerning the issue.
The Reddit user frii14 not only reported their own stolen funds but also mentioned a friend who had ₱24,000 stolen and transferred to the same EastWest account. They also discovered Facebook users who reported losses of ₱80,000 and ₱100,000.
“I doubt this is just one person because it was very fast for them to verify and steal the account,” the user added.
“Sana mabalik pa ang pera namen. Pero mukang malabo na,” frii14 said. [I hope we can get our money back. But it seems unlikely.]
Read more:
This article is published on BitPinas: Unauthorized Transactions on GCash Accounts Raise Concerns Among Users
Disclaimer: BitPinas articles and its external content are not financial advice. The team serves to deliver independent, unbiased news to provide information for Philippine-crypto and beyond.
