The compliance of e-wallet providers in removing online gambling features from their mobile applications is being monitored, Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Henry Aguda said on Monday.

In an interview, Aguda said the agency, together with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), has so far observed positive actions regarding the directive.

“So far, maayos naman. Sumunod naman ‘yung e-wallet providers,” he said.
(So far, it is fine. The e-wallet providers are complying.)

“Bago nung weekend, mga 8,000 plus na ‘yung na-shutdown namin na illegal websites,” he added.
(Before the weekend, we had already shut down around 8,000 illegal websites.)

Aguda also said they will set a meeting with telecommunications companies to firmly address the issue.

“Magpapa-meeting kami sa mga telco… maglalabas na naman ako ng department order, lalabas pa lang this week. Iha-highlight namin sa mga telco, bawal na ang mga illegal gambling website. Ito ‘yung mga panuntunan na dapat niyong sundin. Kasama na diyan ‘yung magre-report sila sa amin,” Aguda said.
(We will conduct a meeting with telco companies... I will release another order this week. We will emphasize that illegal gambling websites are prohibited. These are the rules they must follow, including reporting to us.)

“Alam niyo ba, ‘yung ‘.ph’ hindi pagmamay-ari ng gobyerno. ‘Yan ay pinatatakbo ng isang pribadong organisasyon,” Aguda clarified.
(Did you know, the ‘.ph’ domain is not owned by the government? It is run by a private organization.)

Aguda also revealed that the issue continues as e-gambling operators shift to messaging apps.

“Ang next na kalaban natin, ‘yung mga illegal gambling lumipat sa Telegram,” he said.
(Our next challenge is the illegal gambling that has moved to Telegram.)