ARTIFICIAL intelligence, digital fraud and cybersecurity threats are creating new risks for Philippine banks and other financial institutions as the sector accelerates its shift to digital services, industry executives and cybersecurity professionals said at The Manila Times Executive Roundtable at the Asian Institute of Management.
Mel Migriño, country head of Gogolook Philippines and president and chairman of the Women in Security Alliance Philippines, said the country’s digital transformation was accompanied by risks to digital trust.
“But admittedly, amidst the digital transformation, there is always a compromise. There is an always a compromise of your digital trust, right?” Migriño said.
She said scams, fraud and deepfakes were among the threats accompanying the wider adoption of digital technologies.
“Despite of this, our data for Philippines and also to some parts of Greater Southeast Asia, such as Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, and also Hong Kong, we have seen the proliferation of AI bot calls,” Migriño said.
She said AI-powered calls could mimic voices and that the Philippines could see further proliferation of social media scams and deepfakes.
Sheila Vasquez, representing the Philippine Institute of Cybersecurity Professionals, said digital transformation was helping smaller and specialized banks reach underserved communities but was also exposing users to new threats.
“AI is a very powerful tool that can be utilized by small financial institutions — for example, automating microloans for MSMEs. But we also know that cybercriminals, like Ms. Mel mentioned a while ago, they are utilizing AI as well to create these scams, voice cloning, and even deepfakes, right?” Vasquez said.
She said cybersecurity education should accompany digitalization, particularly for smaller financial institutions with limited resources.
“We cannot expect the public to understand complex encryption algorithms, right?” Vasquez said.
Vasquez also urged financial institutions to begin preparing for post-quantum cryptography, saying existing cryptographic systems could eventually face threats from more powerful quantum computers.
Carlo Lazatin, president of the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, said AI and other technologies were increasingly becoming governance issues rather than concerns limited to information technology departments.
“Once technology begins influencing credit decisions, fraud detection, customer behavior, and how personal data is used, AI stops being purely an IT issue. It becomes a leadership and governance issue,” Lazatin said.
He said governance should allow financial institutions to respond quickly while maintaining appropriate controls.
“Good governance should not mean moving slowly. In fact, good governance should allow institutions to make sound decisions faster, because the responsibilities are clear, the risks are understood, and the right controls are already in place,” Lazatin said.
