MANILA (Bernama-PNA): The Philippine National Police (PNP) will implement new protocols on handling social media (socmed) evidence in criminal cases following the Supreme Court’s issuance of guideposts on proving ownership or control of online accounts, the Philippine News Agency (PNA) reported.
PNP acting chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio C. Nartatez Jr. said in a press release Sunday that the guidelines will enable investigators to authenticate digital evidence and build stronger cases.
"For ongoing investigations, we will review digital evidence carefully, while future cases will be handled more systematically and transparently when it comes to social media posts,” he said.
Earlier, the Supreme Court laid out seven guideposts, including admission of authorship, account access, language patterns, device forensics, and consistency of posts, after affirming the conviction of a man found guilty of repeatedly harassing his former girlfriend on Facebook.
Nartatez said the ruling reinforces due process in the digital age.
"Now, a person can no longer be easily convicted based solely on a screenshot or post that may be fake or hacked. It ensures that law enforcement and the courts follow clear procedures, which strengthens public trust in our justice system,” he said.
Following the guidelines set by the high court, the PNP chief ordered police units to adopt the guideposts into standard procedures, while cybercrime units are being equipped with tools to trace and preserve online evidence.
The PNP is also coordinating with major social media platforms for faster account verification.
Nartatez urged the public to report online crimes properly.
"Remember, do not try to hack or access accounts yourself. Just report the matter to the nearest police station or through our Anti-Cybercrime Group,” he said. -- Bernama-PNA
