Online lending apps: how to borrow safely and what to do if you're harassed

Online lending apps promise cash in minutes with no collateral, and millions of Filipinos have used them. Some are legitimate. Others hide huge fees, shorten due dates, and harass borrowers by messaging their family, friends and even co-workers. Knowing your rights before you borrow can save you money, stress and embarrassment.

Check before you borrow

1. The company must be registered with the SEC as a lending or financing company, with a Certificate of Authority to operate.
2. The app itself should be one the SEC lists as registered for that company. Check the SEC website before installing.
3. Read the full cost: interest, service fees and penalties. A '₱5,000 loan' that deposits only ₱3,800 after fees is far more expensive than it looks.
4. Be wary of apps that demand access to your contacts, photos or social media. That access is often used to shame borrowers later.

What collectors are not allowed to do

SEC rules on fair debt collection prohibit lenders and their collectors from using threats, insults or profane language; publicly shaming borrowers; contacting people in your contact list who aren't your guarantors; falsely claiming to be lawyers, police or courts; and calling outside reasonable hours (before 6:00 a.m. or after 10:00 p.m.) unless the account is overdue by more than 60 days or you agreed to it. Fake 'court orders' and 'warrants' sent by chat are a known scare tactic. Real court documents don't arrive by text message.

If you're being harassed

1. Stay calm and don't send money to any new account a collector gives you; confirm payment channels only through the official app or company.
2. Screenshot every message, call log and post, with dates.
3. File a complaint with the SEC (against the lending company) and with the National Privacy Commission (for misuse of your contacts or personal data).
4. For threats or fake legal documents, you can also report to the PNP Anti-Cybercrime Group or the CICC hotline 1326.
5. Tell your family and friends early, before the collector does. It takes away the collector's power to embarrass you.

You still owe what you legally borrowed, but harassment is not a legal way to collect it. Many borrowers who report abusive lenders find the pressure stops.

Safer ways to borrow

• SSS salary loan or Pag-IBIG multi-purpose loan, if you have enough contributions: much lower rates than most apps.
• Your employer's salary advance or a cooperative you belong to.
• A bank personal loan or credit card installment, if you qualify, which is usually cheaper and regulated.
• Before any loan: can a smaller, planned sacrifice this month cover the need instead?

How to do it in Iponista

1. Go to Plan → Installments & paylater and tap Add. Enter the lender, the amount you actually received, each payment and the due dates.
2. Turn on reminders so you're never late and never give a collector a reason to call.
3. Watch 'What's left to pay' shrink every time you log a payment.
4. When it's fully paid, keep setting that same amount aside as a savings goal, so you won't need the app again.

Remember this

Check the SEC before you borrow, never let an app into your contacts, document every harassing message, and report it. Cheaper loans exist.

Do this today

If you have an app loan, add it to Installments & paylater with its real amount and due dates.