Cybercrime Victimization Hits Record 8% Among Filipino Families — SWS

Cybercrime victimization among Filipino families has reached its highest level since Social Weather Stations (SWS) began tracking the issue, even as reported victimization from common physical crimes declined nationwide.

The Second Quarter 2026 Social Weather Survey found that 8.0% of Filipino families had at least one member who became a victim of cybercrime within the previous six months, up 2.2 percentage points from 5.8% in March 2026.

SWS said the June figure is a new high for cybercrime victimization since it began monitoring the category in June 2023.

The survey covers cybercrime experiences such as online scams, account hacking and cyberbullying involving respondents or other members of their household.

The increase contrasts with the overall trend for common crimes. Families reporting victimization from pickpocketing or robbery, break-ins, carnapping and physical violence declined to 10.0% in June from 12.3% in March.

Cybercrime victimization also increased in three of the country’s four major geographic areas.

Metro Manila recorded the highest rate at 13.4%, rising from 10.1% in March. The Visayas saw the sharpest increase, more than doubling from 4.1% to 10.4%, while Mindanao climbed from 5.3% to 8.8%.

Balance Luzon was the only area where the rate declined, although only slightly, from 5.5% to 5.1%.

The figures show a different trajectory between crimes committed in physical spaces and those experienced online. Property crime victimization, which includes street robbery, break-ins and carnapping, fell from 11.5% in March to 9.1% in June.

SWS began including cybercrime in its quarterly crime victimization surveys in June 2023, marking the first new crime category added to its monitoring in three decades.

The Second Quarter 2026 Social Weather Survey was conducted from June 20 to 29 through face-to-face interviews with 1,200 adults nationwide, with 300 respondents each from Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao.

The survey has a sampling error margin of ±3 percentage points for national figures and ±6 percentage points for each geographic area. The crime victimization questions were non-commissioned and included by SWS on its own initiative as a public service.