SEC Warns against Fraudulent Creation of an eSECURE Account

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warns the public against fraudulent activities involving the creation of eSECURE accounts.

The Electronic SEC Universal Registration Environment is a credentialing service that is designed to ensure the security and authenticity of an applicant’s online identity. As part of the Commission’s electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) module, the Commission collects and processes personal information from the applicant which includes a liveness check where the live image of the applicant is captured.

However, the Commission has recently detected and is currently investigating persons or groups of persons engaged in the application/creation of eSECURE accounts intended for other individuals or without the knowledge of the intended applicant which is not allowed by the Commission.

The public is hereby warned that the Commission will not tolerate fraudulent activities in connection with the use of eSECURE application such as, but not limited to the following:

• Submission of false, manipulated, or impersonated biometric information
• Use of false, forged, or misleading credentials or documents, and
• Provision of inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading personal details.

The Commission further emphasizes that each eSECURE account is strictly personal and must be created and completed by the applicant. No person or third party is permitted or allowed to create, operate, or submit an eSECURE application on behalf of another individual under any circumstance.

All information and biometric data submitted through the eSECURE application must be accurate, truthful, and verifiable. Any individual or entity found to have engaged in fraudulent application practices will be subject to appropriate regulatory actions, which may include rejection of the application, sanctions, suspension from the Commission’s services, and imposition of the appropriate fines and penalties.

The public is hereby strongly advised to PERSONALLY open a eSECURE Account and NOT TO TRANSACT with or ENGAGE any persons or entities to open or create an eSECURE Account on their behalf.

Persons or entities who offer assistance in creating a eSECURE account and/or use fraud are liable for violation of Section 162 of Republic Act No. 11232, otherwise known as the Revised Corporation Code (RCC) and Obtaining Corporate Registration Through Fraud in violation of Section 164 of the same code which are penalized with a maximum fine ranging from Five thousand pesos (P5,000.00) to Two million pesos (P2,000,000.00), and not more than One thousand pesos (P1,000.00) for each day of continuing violation but in no case to exceed Two million pesos (P2,000,000.00).

The pubic may also send information or reports on persons or entities engaged in the above-mentioned prohibited acts to the Enforcement and Investor Protection Department (EIPD) at email at [email protected].