Globe Telecom Inc. said Monday it blocked a record number of malicious sites in the first nine months of this year, an alarming development in broader fight against illegal internet activities.
Globe said it blocked a total 404,730 websites and links associated with child pornography, illegal gambling, online piracy and other malicious content between January and September, a 45 percent surged from the 278,555 Uniform Resource Links, or URLs, and domains barred in the same period last year.
The telecom company and digital solutions platform said an upgrade of its filtering capabilities in both mobile and broadband services allowed to intensify efforts to fulfill its commitment to creating a safer online environment.
Even so, the figures provided by Globe underscore the proliferation of illegal activities online, apparently because of the financial returns for these criminal activities.
Globe said that in the third quarter alone, the number of malicious sites it cut off soared by 71 percent to 267,985 compared with 156,857 in the same quarter of 2022.
Between January and September, Globe blocked 397,637 URLs this year compared with 275,720 in 2022. It has also restricted 4,795 domains in 2023, more than three times higher than the 1,432 blocked in the previous year.
Focusing on child pornography, Globe barred 2,298 domains by the end of September 2023, compared to 1,403 during the same period last year.
“Our commitment to creating a safe online environment is unwavering. We recognize the critical role we play in combating illegal online activities, especially those that exploit the most children. Our increased efforts and investments in blocking access to illegal content are a testament to our dedication to this cause,” said Anton Bonifacio, Globe’s chief information security officer.
