MANILA -- Bishop Alberto Uy of the Diocese of Tagbilaran has cautioned the faithful against those using his name to solicit money.
Uy said the official e-mail address of the Diocese has been hacked.
“It is very depressing to note that the official e-mail address of the Diocese of Tagbilaran has been hacked. There is a solicitation letter using my name being sent out asking for money for a girl in Sierra Leone suffering from renal failure,” the Catholic prelate said in a statement Thursday.
“May I respectfully inform and warn you against this deception which seeks to swindle Church institutions by fraudulently using the name of church authorities to solicit funds,” he added.
Uy also urged the people to be very mindful in responding to any requests they receive particularly mentioning his name or the diocese.
“All concerned are encouraged to use maximum prudence in respect to requests for information or money, through the internet or other media, particularly when mention is made of my name or the name of the Diocese of Tagbilaran,” he said.
“I trust that you will be able to go beyond whatever displeasure this situation may unfortunately cause so that we will continue to serve Christ with a free heart,” the head of the Tagbilaran Diocese added.
This is not the first time that the name of the bishop was involved in a similar attempt by cybercriminals at fraud using the social media.
Back in November 2017, identity thieves lurking in social media targeted the bishop and his name.
The bishop back then also warned his followers on social media about someone who allegedly created a bogus Facebook account featuring Uy’s name allegedly for financial gain.
In his appeal to the faithful that time, Uy said there was someone who was posing as the bishop and asking people around for financial help or “soliciting something.”
In the same post last year, Uy urged netizens to report the account as a scam to Facebook.
“Ayaw intawon mo pailad (Don't be misled)," Uy stressed. "Pastilan Ginoo, pasayloa ning mga tawo nga nangilad sa imong katawhan. (Oh God, please forgive these individuals for fooling your people)." (PNA)
(PNA)
