The UP Oblation at the UP Diliman campus. / Inquirer File Photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – “Duplicate” and “fake” accounts bearing the names of some students of the University of the Philippine (UP) have started to proliferate on social media sites.
The UP Office of the Student Regent suspects that these were made to “cause harm or spread false information.”
But the student body is asking victims not to panic and instead help in reporting these suspicious accounts.
“#DefendUP #StopTheAttacks First reported by Tug-ani where reports show accounts copying the names of UP Cebu students after the arrest of our fellow students during their peaceful protest last 05 June 2020,” said an advisory that was posted on Saturday, June 6, 2020, at the UP Office of the Student Regent Facebook page.
Read: Terror bill protests: Cebu cops arrest 8 inside UP campus
Militant groups nationwide have condemned the ‘warrantless arrest’ of the protesters outside of the UP Cebu Campus on while the Commission on Human Rights in Central Visayas (CHR- 7) had said that they are conducting an investigation to determine if civil rights were violated in the incident.
In their Facebook post, the UP Office of the Student Regent said that reports on the presence of fake accounts surfaced “following protests in UP campuses and threats to our students.”
“We express our utmost alarm since these accounts are suspected to cause harm or spread false information. It would be best if we all stay informed and vigilant,” the advisory said.
“We are encouraging students NOT to panic and instead help each other in reporting SUSPICIOUS accounts ONLY. We just need to stand together against possible tactics seeking to silence our voice. Stay safe everyone!”
Read: Police ready charges against 7 arrested protesters
But the Office of the Student Regent continue to hope that the presence of duplicate and fake accounts merely resulted from “a glitch in the system only and can be resolved as soon as possible.”
“However, let it be clear that we will not tolerate any misleading content posted on any account that will endanger our students,” the student body said. / dcb