Philippines’ CICC and Meta take down influencer pages in crackdown on illegal online gambling

Four high-profile Facebook influencers with a combined following of more than 15 million have been removed.

The Philippines.-The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Centre (CICC) has confirmed that the Facebook pages of four prominent influencers have been permanently taken down by Meta after they were found to be promoting illegal gambling services. The action follows the CICC’s March 4 announcement of an inter-agency campaign aimed at eliminating illegal e-sabong and unlicensed online casino promotions from digital platforms.

According to the agency, the removal of the pages occurred within a week of the CICC reporting the accounts to Meta’s safety and security team. The deactivated pages belonged to influencers identified as Perkz Gaming, Vic Desucatan, Awit Gamer and Miss Ginbilog, who collectively had more than 15 million followers on Facebook.

The CICC described the move as part of astrategy to disrupt the online ecosystem that enables illegal gambling operations to thrive. “As the watchdog of the nation’s cyberspace, our goal is to strike at the root of the online gambling epidemic,” it said in a statement. “By removing the mouthpieces that lure vulnerable Filipinos into these unregulated schemes, we are cutting off the oxygen to these illegal operations.”

Authorities issued a warning to other influencers, saying that it is reviewing a list of social media personalities and content creators suspected of violating national laws by advertising illegal gaming. The agency said large follower counts would not shield individuals from enforcement.

Philippine officials are presenting the collaboration with Meta as a model for stronger cooperation with technology companies in tackling illegal online activities. The CICC said it is maintaining real-time coordination with Meta and other social media platforms to detect and remove “mirror” accounts or newly created pages that could attempt to replace the banned profiles.

The government has also partnered with private sector groups that monitor online activity, including Digital Pinoys. Authorities are also urging the public to play a role in reporting suspicious content online. Citizens who encounter pages or individuals promoting illegal online gambling are encouraged to report them through the Inter-Agency Response Centre hotline.

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See also: Philippine authorities move to prosecute influencers for promoting illegal online gambling

Four high-profile Facebook influencers with a combined following of more than 15 million have been removed. The Philippines.-The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Centre (CICC) has confirmed that the Facebook pages of four prominent influencers have been permanently taken down by Meta after they were found to be promoting illegal gambling services. The action follows the…