The Scam Watch Pilipinas Anti-Scam Quad Model has landed its co-founder, Jocel de Guzman, on the Money Awareness and Inclusion Awards (MAIA) global Top 50 Change Makers 2025 list, which recognizes individuals whose work advances financial literacy, inclusion, and consumer protection worldwide.
MAIA is a global awards program that recognizes individuals and organizations making measurable contributions to financial literacy, financial inclusion, and consumer protection. Its annual Change Makers list is intended to highlight impact across regions and sectors and is not a ranking, according to MAIA founder Michael Gilmore.
De Guzman is the only Filipino included in the 2025 cohort, and one of six Asians among the 50 change makers selected globally, based on the list released by the MAIA.
According to MAIA’s published description, de Guzman was included for his role in co-founding and leading Scam Watch Pilipinas, a citizen-powered anti-scam movement focused on public education, media engagement, volunteer mobilization, and cross-sector collaboration to address online fraud and financial harm.
De Guzman said he was grateful for the recognition, noting that it reflects collective work rather than individual achievement. “This acknowledgment belongs to Scam Watch Pilipinas volunteers, partners, media practitioners, policymakers, and ordinary Filipinos who believe online scams should not be treated as an unavoidable part of digital life,” De Guzman said.
De Guzman added that the recognition helps amplify advocacy against online fraud and opens opportunities for deeper collaboration with the government, various sectors, and communities. “I hope this contributes to the wider adoption of the Scam Watch Pilipinas Quad Model,” he said.
The Scam Watch Pilipinas Quad Model, authored by De Guzman, is a citizen-powered, cross-sector approach that brings together behavioral change, volunteer watchers, institutional cooperation, and technology-enabled reporting to make digital safety a shared responsibility.
Other Asian honorees named by MAIA this year include Frances Yong of Singapore, an anti-scam campaigner and founder of WhiteByte.org; Pei Ming Goh, Singapore’s Minister of State for Home Affairs and Social and Family Development, recognized for his role in national anti-scam and consumer protection initiatives; Hieu Minh Ngo of Vietnam, cited for work in cybersecurity and digital trust education; Karthik Rangappa of India, chief of education at Zerodha and a personal finance educator; and Surya Banda, an India-based professional working on digital financial education and inclusion.
The MAIA Change Makers 2025 list also includes Pierogi, a content creator known for exposing online scam operations and disrupting scam networks through investigative videos, and Jorij Abraham, managing director of the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (GASA), whose work focuses on international cooperation and cross-border coordination against fraud.
The MAIA Change Makers 2025 list features individuals from Asia, Europe, Africa, North America, and Oceania, with countries represented including the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and several European states. The full list is available on MAIA’s official website.
Scam Watch Pilipinas was founded by De Guzman and Art Samaniego in 2023 to help educate Filipinos against online scams. In 2025, Scam Watch Pilipinas helped institutionalize 1326 as the National Anti-Scam Hotline, expanded technology-enabled reporting through eGovPH eReport and Scam Vault PH, launched campaigns such as UnMatchPH and HolidayWatchPH, and shifted from digital advocacy to on-ground community training through Scam Watch Pilipinas On-The-Go with local governments. It also rolled out Volunteer Watcher trainings for senior citizens, retirees and pensioners, mothers, students, public school teachers, and media practitioners. By integrating behavioral change, volunteer action, cross-sector collaboration, and technology, 2025 marked the year Scam Watch Pilipinas unified awareness, reporting, and community action into a scalable model with national impact and international relevance.
The recognition comes amid continued international exposure for Scam Watch Pilipinas. In 2024, the initiative was cited as Top 2 Best Global Anti-Scam Campaign at the GASA Scam Fighter Awards. De Guzman also unveiled the Scam Watch Pilipinas Anti-Scam Quad Model during the Global Anti-Scam Summit held in Singapore in September last year.
Get the full list at this website: https://www.maiawards.org/insights/maia-change-makers-2025/
