PLDT and Smart strengthen child protection and AI safeguards following youth consultations highlighting cyberbullying, scams, and digital misinformation.
By Bilyonaryo staff
PLDT Inc. and its wireless unit Smart Communications Inc. are tightening child protection and artificial intelligence (AI) safeguards after consultations with Filipino teenagers exposed concerns over cyberbullying, online scams and the reliability of AI-generated content.
The telecommunications group partnered with Child Rights Coalition (CRC) Asia to gather feedback from teenagers aged 13 to 19 across Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao on online safety and the use of emerging technologies.
Participants described the internet as unsafe for young people, citing experiences with cyberbullying, scams and misinformation.
While acknowledging AI’s benefits for education and content creation, they demanded greater transparency about its use and stronger safeguards against inaccurate information.
“Our conversations with them provide us with valuable insights into the realities of today’s digital spaces and a deeper understanding of the challenges they face online,” PLDT and Smart Chief Sustainability Officer Melissa Vergel de Dios said.
The feedback contributed to updated child safeguarding policies emphasizing safety-by-design and responsible AI use, building on the group’s adoption of the Children’s Rights and Business Principles framework in 2018.
PLDT and Smart said they blocked access to more than 213 billion malicious domains and disabled about 373,000 mobile numbers linked to phishing and other scams in the first half of 2026.
They also blocked more than one million attempts to access websites linked to online sexual abuse and exploitation of children during the period.
Since June 2021, the group has blocked more than 2.3 million URLs associated with such material, according to company data.—Bilyonaryo.com
