According to the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey, 6.1% of Filipino families reported experiencing common crimes in the six months leading up to September 2024. This marks a significant increase from 3.8% in June 2024 and is the highest rate since September 2023. The survey, conducted from September 14-23, 2024, highlights rising levels of cybercrime and persistent fears about neighborhood safety.
The survey, which sampled 1,200 adults across the nation, sheds light on the ongoing concerns about public safety. In addition to traditional crimes, the rate of cybercrimes reached an unprecedented 7.2% in September, nearly double the 3.7% recorded in June. This rapid increase points to the growing threat of online scams, hacking, and cyberbullying.
Rising Crime and Public Fear
Victimization by Property Crimes: The survey reported that 5.5% of families fell victim to property crimes such as pickpocketing, home break-ins, and carnapping, up from 3.5% in June 2024. This category includes a variety of offenses:
- Street Robbery: Incidents rose to 4.0% in September, up from 1.9% in June.
- Break-ins: Reported by 2.3% of families, an increase from 1.7%.
- Physical Violence: Approximately 0.8% of families experienced violence, marking a slight increase.
However, the report indicates that carnapping cases remained stable at 0.5%.
Regional Crime Variations:
- In Metro Manila, crime rates rose notably, with street robbery incidents increasing from 3.7% to 6.0%.
- Balance Luzon saw a rise in street robberies from 1.8% to 4.5%.
- Visayas also experienced an uptick in crime, with break-ins jumping from 1.3% to 4.7%.
- In Mindanao, while street robbery cases rose slightly, break-ins decreased from 2.3% in June to just 1.0% in September.
Persistent Neighborhood Fears and Public Perception of Drug Abuse
High levels of fear persist among Filipinos when it comes to neighborhood safety:
- Burglary Concerns: 56% of respondents reported being fearful of burglaries, up slightly from 55% in June.
- Unsafe Streets: Nearly half (48%) of adults feel unsafe walking their streets at night. This concern is highest in Metro Manila, at 57%.
- Drug Addiction Visibility: Despite a slight national decrease to 41%, 66% of Metro Manila residents reported a visible presence of drug addicts in their area.
Mindanao-Specific Highlights
Mindanao showed unique trends in the survey results:
- Street Robberies: The incidence of street robberies rose from 1.7% in June to 2.7%.
- Break-ins: Break-ins in the region notably declined from 2.3% to 1.0%, a rare decrease compared to other regions.
- Cybercrime: Victimization by cybercrime increased from 3.0% to 5.7%.
- Neighborhood Safety: The percentage of Mindanao residents fearful of burglaries rose from 43% in June to 52% in September. Fear of walking at night decreased from 44% to 42%.
Survey Background
The Third Quarter 2024 Social Weather Survey was conducted from September 14-23, 2024, using face-to-face interviews with 1,200 adults (18 years old and above) nationwide, split equally among Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. The survey has a sampling error margin of ±2.8% for national percentages and ±5.7% for each region.
Since 1989, SWS has included questions about common crime victimization. In June 2023, it added cybercrime-related questions, such as experiences with online scams, hacking, or cyberbullying, with the exact question phrased as follows:
“In the past 6 months, have you or any member of your family been a victim of cybercrime like online scam, hacking of an account, or cyberbullying?”
On neighborhood fears, respondents were asked to rate the following statements:
- “In this neighborhood, people are usually afraid that robbers might break into their houses.”
- “In this neighborhood, people are usually afraid to walk in the street at night because it is not safe.”
- “In this neighborhood, there are already very many people addicted to banned drugs.”
SWS follows strict in-house procedures for questionnaire design, data collection, and analysis, ensuring the accuracy and independence of its findings.
