Rakuten Viber warns Filipinos vs AI-powered scams, QR phishing

Rakuten Viber has warned Filipinos against emerging scam tactics that use artificial intelligence, fake QR codes, and more personalized phishing methods to trick users into giving away money or sensitive information.

The company said scams are becoming harder to detect as fraudsters move away from generic messages and adopt more convincing schemes designed to imitate trusted contacts, brands, banks, telcos, and government agencies.

Citing industry reports, Rakuten Viber said 52 percent of Filipinos have been scammed at least once, while Filipinos encounter scam attempts almost every two days and are targeted an average of 239 times a year.

Rakuten Viber said this shift reflects the “professionalization of fraud,” where scammers now use AI and social engineering to create more targeted attacks.

Among the threats it flagged are hyper-personalized phishing, where scammers use publicly available information to craft messages that appear relevant and legitimate; SMS blaster attacks, where fraudsters hijack text threads to make scam messages look like they came from official sources; and bridge attacks, where victims are moved from safer platforms to less secure channels or voice calls.

The company also warned against AI-generated imposter scams that use deepfake voices or videos to imitate relatives or friends, fake shopping websites promoted through online ads, and QR phishing, also known as “quishing,” where malicious links are embedded in QR codes to steal banking or e-wallet credentials.

“Scams are a pervasive, damaging part of our digital life. They are a serious issue that could cost a lifetime’s worth of savings and bring mental distress. Even the most careful people can fall for scams; these cybercriminals don’t care who they steal from,” said Liad Shnell, chief technology officer at Rakuten Viber.

Shnell said fraudsters are becoming more aggressive as they use AI, new technologies, and emotional manipulation to make scams harder to identify.

“But security experts everywhere, including us from Rakuten Viber, are on their tail. We are constantly studying their schemes and improving our proactive systems to help users protect their personal and financial information,” Shnell said.

Rakuten Viber said it uses a hybrid moderation model that combines machine learning with human review to detect and block accounts suspected of spamming or fraud.

The messaging platform also allows users to block or report users, groups, and communities. It automatically filters messages from unknown contacts into a separate “Message Requests” folder and offers a Caller ID feature that helps flag suspicious calls.

Users can also control who can add them to groups, while one-on-one and group chats remain protected by end-to-end encryption.

Rakuten Viber reminded users to pause before clicking links or scanning QR codes, verify the source of messages, avoid opening unsolicited links or attachments, use a family safe word to confirm identity, and limit the personal information they share online.

“It’s also good practice to keep yourself aware and updated on how scammers are evolving, so you can be one step ahead of them and be prepared if you encounter them,” Shnell said.

“If any transaction or conversation involves sharing personal and financial information, it’s better to be skeptical than sorry. Don’t give your details right away,” he added.