A Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) proposal that would have Meta accept the Philippine National ID for account verification is facing objections from technology professionals and social media users over data privacy and security risks.
Ian Aragoza, chairperson of the Computer Professionals Union (CPU), said the proposal could link Filipinos’ government-issued identities to their online activity. According to Aragoza, the scope could extend beyond Facebook and Instagram to messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, Viber and Discord.
“That means that practically, anonymity will disappear in the Internet,” he said.
Aragoza said tying government identities to online accounts introduces new risks in a country where personal data breaches have repeatedly affected government agencies. “We see that in the last few years, there have been a lot of major leaks, even from government agencies,” he said.
Anonymity and online expression
Aragoza said mandatory identity verification could discourage Filipinos from using anonymity to criticize government policies, pointing to the case of a teacher arrested over social media posts during the Duterte administration. He described privacy and anonymity as more than technical features, calling them safeguards for free expression, including dissent.
Precedent from SIM registration
Aragoza also questioned whether the measure would reduce scams and cybercrime, citing the SIM Registration Act, under Republic Act No. 11934, as a precedent. He said scammers circumvented that law by using SIM cards registered under other people’s names, and that a similar workaround could emerge under mandatory social media identification. He cited age-verification systems in countries such as Australia, where he said users have bypassed restrictions using virtual private networks.
Instead of mandatory identification, Aragoza proposed stronger measures against extremist content, expanded digital literacy programs in schools, and greater platform accountability for detecting and removing harmful material. He also cited stricter gun regulation and mental health support as measures relevant to online-linked violence involving young people.
User concerns
Kinneth Santander, a social media user, said he is uneasy about linking his account to his National ID, citing the risk that personal information could be leaked or misused for scams, fraud or the creation of fake accounts under another person’s identity. He said the requirement could also affect willingness to criticize the government online. “There’s a fear in life because your personal ID is already linked to social media,” he said.
The DICT has previously sought public input on mandatory social media identity verification as part of efforts to address online scams, identity theft and other cybercrimes, which fall under the scope of the Cybercrime Prevention Act and the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10173), the law that governs how personal data collected by government and private entities in the Philippines must be protected.
Aragoza said the central question is whether stricter identification requirements would make Filipinos safer online without compromising privacy and anonymity. “Nothing happened with what was promised, yet they still got our information,” he said, referring to past identification measures that expanded data collection without delivering their stated safeguards.
The DICT has not announced a timeline for implementing the proposal.
