BLOGGED PHILIPPINES

About eight years ago when me and my friends were flying from Cebu to Davao, we came across an issue as we pass by the second inspection point in the airport. After my friend’s bag passed through the X-ray machine, an airport officer called her up and confirmed if she’s bringing an umbrella inside the plane cabin. On that day we knew that umbrellas needs to be checked-in. We are not informed of the new policy. In that instance, my friend surrendered her precious umbrella than pay extra baggage for it. Baggage security check in airports. Since then, things have already improved. At some point, checking in your umbrella won’t cost you a dime. And now, the latest as per my experience last month, you can now bring your “foldable” umbrella inside the plane. The prohibition only applies to cane type of umbrella. What I mean are the long “non-foldable” umbrellas. So the next time you fly and are worried you won’t have an umbrella to use in your destination, this information may comfor...

It's a brand new year for everyone, including local scammers. And despite all the efforts by PLDT and Globe Telecom to curb text message scammers, from time to time, they still creep out and show up in our inboxes. And as hard to believe as the messages of winning some great amounts of money is the fact that there are still people who believe them. I personally know someone and that scam text message triggered events that turn her life upside down. So my point is, we still need to be careful regarding these scam messages. The danger is real! So without further ado, here's the scam message I received a few days ago. On Sunday, January 7, 2018 at exactly 3:33PM (PH time), I received this message from a certain Atty. Jhon Acosta with phone number 09552962911 Congratulations! Ursim# Hadwon PHP850,000 From(GMA KAPUSO FOUNDATION) To Claim Send Ur (NAME/ADD/AGE) &Call Me Now Im Atty;JHON ACOSTA DTI#0391s2018 Thankyou,  Do Not Ever Reply Obviously, this is a...

My passbook (inside my bag) was recently stolen inside a local grocery store, and I would like to share the steps I took to secure my account and get a new passbook.      By User:Aerous ", CC BY-SA 3.0 , Link The steps outlined here are for a BPI savings account, but generally, the procedure will be very similar to other banks in the Philippines. 1. Call the Bank to Secure Your Account The first and most crucial step you need to do immediately is to contact your bank by phone or personally report it to the branch where you opened the account. This action will ensure that funds will stay put. The bank will lock the account immediately. The big banks have 24/7 hotlines. For BPI, it's 889-100. You have to do this step ASAP after discovering the loss. 2. Go to the Branch to Ask for a Replacement of the Passbook It can mean a simple replacement of the lost passbook, but it can also mean closing the entire account and opening a new one for security purposes. 3. Get an Af...

I had to write about this scam that I experienced recently. Although it can be viewed as small-time, even silly, I think it can be a big deal to others especially those struggling with their budget. Here's the story. My friend whom I'm sharing the internet connection has to move to another place. With that, we agreed that I will be the one to take over the internet connection. So I went to PLDT to process the transfer of account to mine. I also have to move the physical router from his unit to my unit since we are living in one building. The process goes smoothly and after a few days, the transfer process was completed. Now here comes the scam. Shortly before I received my first paper bill, I received a message which at first glance looks like a friendly reminder to pay my bill and installation fee. The message goes like this Good day from pldt...mr/ms (my name)...this is your account number 251732566...fyi for your payment, installation. The message was sent using a...

Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) beefs up its security against ATM skimmers by introducing an optional ATM Withdrawal notification system. It's quite simple, when user activates this feature, he will receive a notification whenever withdrawals were made from his account using an ATM. How to Activate? There are three steps to activate BPI ATM Notification. 1. Login to BPI Express Online For those who has no online account, please see this article. [ How to Enroll An Account to BPI Express Online Banking? ] 2. Under the Other Services menu, hover over ATM Card Services and then click on Withdrawal Notifications . 3. Choose the setting that you want (i.e. email or SMS/text notification, amount of transaction etc). Click Submit .

Are you a BPI account holder? Is your account enrolled to BPI Express Online? Do you want to access your account and transact using your smartphone and tablet? If your answer to all these three questions is "yes", then I would suggest you to try BPI Express Mobile App. BPI Express Mobile is the official mobile banking application of Bank of the Philippine Island (BPI). It allows registered customers to access their accounts using their smartphones and tablets. Here's a brief review: User Interface and Functionality The user interface was great. It was intuitive and easy to use. Although lacking of other functionality compared to that of the web-based express online, it has the basic functions that majority use: branch/ATM locator, balance inquiry, fund transfer, and bills payment.

Just a brief background on Heartbleed Bug . Remember that "lock" symbol at you're browser's address bar? That tells you that your connection is encrypted. It means that when someone tries to eavesdrop on your connection, they cannot read your information because it was jumbled. Early this week though, researchers discovered a bug or an error in the technology behind that lock, OpenSSL. Meaning to say, sometimes, it wont work. The worst thing though is that about 70% of the internet uses that technology. It means that some websites, including the ones where you use your credit card number and PIN can expose you to hackers.

Early this morning, my office mate approached me and asked the contact number of Unionbank. The reason is that he apparently lost some 75% of his money! That's troubling indeed. He found it out after he checked his balance using Unionbank's online facility. I referred him to the domestic toll free hotline of Unionbank Philppines. It can be seen at the back of the ATM card. Unionbank  Philippines Online Facility Hacked Unionbank Account? I also checked my account and to my surprise, it was also reduced by almost the same percentage. I was troubled and began to wonder if the company's network has been compromised. I tried to contact UnionBank hotline but the call was denied due to heavy traffic (as shown in my phone). Gladly though, after a minute or two, my office mate was able to contact them. Unionbank Online Facility Under Maintenance The online teller told us of the possible root-cause of the apparent loss of money. At that time, there's a system m...

Image via Wikipedia If you will be travelling without check-in baggage like the famous Cebu Pacific Go-Lite promo, better not to bring your umbrellas. Before, we just fold our umbrellas and keep it inside our hand carried bags. Now, there's a new security order to include umbrellas in your check-in baggages. Well, again, if you happen to be travelling with Go-Lite ticket, then you would have to pay 400 pesos for baggage reinstatement. Experience in Mactan Airport I just had this experience when I traveled a few weeks ago. After getting the boarding pass from Cebu Pacific counter and paying the terminal fee, we are told at the final inspection that umbrellas should be checked-in. How annoying it is to imagine how long we been standing there in the line to the counters and to think that it was not even mentioned on the first inspection! One of my company had to go back to the counter and negotiate the matter. And here's the funny thing: it's not that easy to check ...

TESDA. Image via Wikipedia There have been seven consecutive hacker attacks on Philippine Government websites since December 2009. The latest was on Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) website , www.tesda.gov.ph . TESDA Site with “Dirty Finger” This morning, TESDA websit e was defaced with an image of a man casting a dirty finger in the air and asking in English: “What will be used in the election? “. It obviously pertains to the coming Philippine election on May 10 this year which is planned to be automated.