Meta removes videos of South Cotabato school shooting

MANILA – The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) on Friday said Meta has immediately taken down videos of the school shooting incident that killed three students, including the gunman, and wounded six others in South Cotabato.

“Sa patuloy na koordinasyon ng CICC sa Meta, agad pong na-takedown ang mga kumalat na video ng insidente sa kanilang social media platforms, habang mabilis ding na-block ang mga account na nagbahagi ng nasabing material (Through the CICC’s ongoing coordination with Meta, videos of the incident circulating on their social media platforms were immediately taken down, and the accounts that shared the material were swiftly blocked,” CICC Executive Director Renato “Aboy” Paraiso said in a statement.

Paraiso said the Threat Monitoring Center (TMC) of the CICC, an office under the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), continues to closely monitor the online space to identify and take immediate action on any new content related to the incident.

Both the DICT and CICC urged the public to refrain from sharing any videos of the shooting incident that took place in one of the classrooms of Banga National High School in Barangay Benitez at around 1:15 p.m.

“Ang pagpapakalat ng ganitong content ay maaaring magdulot ng higit na takot, kalituhan at posibleng magbigay ng inspirasyon sa copycat violence (Circulating such content can cause heightened fear and confusion, and potentially inspire copycat violence),” Paraiso said.

The CICC extended its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims.

Paraiso encouraged parents and guardians to monitor their children's online activities, particularly their use of gaming apps, messaging features, participation in online communities, and private chats.

He said the CICC will continue to coordinate with social media, gaming and messaging platforms, as well as other concerned agencies and stakeholders, to prevent “cyber-enabled threats and other forms of online harm.” (PNA)