FACT CHECK: Fake OWWA scholarship registration links lead to phishing websites

Claim: The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) scholarship program offers a P20,000 monthly allowance and P60,000 yearly for tuition, which students can access by registering through a link shared in posts online.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: Numerous Facebook posts have circulated this claim, with one of the most viral gaining 16,900 views, 435 reactions, and 137 shares. The page repeatedly promoting the claim, “MSWD News Update,” has 130,000 followers.

Text in the video states: “OWWA Scholarship program. Elementary, high school, college P20k – monthly allowance. P60k – for tuition fee yearly.”

In the comment section, many Filipinos appear convinced by the claim, with users asking about how to apply, what the requirements are, and how they can join the program.

The facts: A screenshot of the image analyzed with the AI detection tool Sight Engine shows it is 99% likely AI-generated, with 99% confidence in the use of GenAI and face manipulation, and signs of the use of diffusion models, primarily Stable Diffusion.

Hive Moderation also flagged the image as 98.2% likely to contain AI-generated or deepfake content, identifying it as created by AI models such as Gemini, Gemini3, and Veo3. A reverse image search found no credible source linking the image to a real video, further indicating it is not authentic.

Phishing sites: The registration link shared in the posts was flagged as suspicious by EasyDMARC’s phishing link checker. The links direct users to websites labeled as “OWWA Scholarship Program Online Registration” for elementary, high school, and college students, giving the impression that these are official OWWA pages. The link to the official OWWA website, however, bears the .gov.ph domain.

The forms found in the impostor OWWA sites request personal information, including full name, school, contact number, grade level, preferred payout day, and mobile phone number — data commonly targeted in phishing attempts to steal sensitive information. (READ: Phishing 101: How to spot and avoid phishing)

OWWA scholarship: Official information from the OWWA website shows that the details of the agency’s scholarship programs differ from those provided in the viral claim. Under the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) Dependent Scholarship Program, eligible dependents of OFWs enrolled in bachelor’s or associate courses in Philippine colleges or universities can receive P20,000 per school year.

Similarly, the Education for Development Scholarship Program provides up to P60,000 per school year to qualified OFW dependents until they complete a baccalaureate course. For freshmen, selection is based on the Department of Science and Technology’s national examinations, with only the top 1,000 qualifiers accepted, while 600 slots are available for students continuing from 2nd to 5th year.

Meanwhile, the Congressional Migrant Workers Scholarship Program offers up to P60,000 per school year to deserving migrant workers or their children pursuing courses in priority fields of science and technology, with funding sourced from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and managed separately by OWWA.

Debunked: Rappler has previously debunked similar posts with fake online registration links for various programs:

• FACT CHECK: Christmas bonus links for 4Ps members, non-members, are fake, lead to phishing websites
• FACT CHECK: PCSO scholarship application reel is fake, leads to phishing websites
• FACT CHECK: Links for DOST scholarship online application lead to phishing websites
• FACT CHECK: Registration links for PWD cash aid lead to phishing, shopping sites
• FACT CHECK: Registration links for ‘Christmas bonus’ payouts lead to phishing site
• FACT CHECK: News report on student cash incentives with 5kg rice is AI-generated 

– Marjuice Destinado/Rappler.com

Marjuice Destinado is a senior political science student at Cebu Normal University (CNU) and an alumna of the Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship of Rappler for 2025.

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