Manila, July 31 -- The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) on Friday warned the public against fake Facebook accounts and other social media pages impersonating the agency to defraud scam victims.

In a statement, CICC Undersecretary Renato Paraiso said there are reports of unscrupulous groups that are using the agency's name, logo and identity to lure scam victims into paying a fee in exchange for help in recovering money they had already lost to online fraud.

"In effect, these victims are being scammed twice," Paraiso said.

The CICC never charges for receiving complaints, assisting victims or investigating cybercrimes.

"Our services are entirely free," he said.

He noted that cybercriminals are no longer targeting...