FACT CHECK: Post on P5,000 DepEd cash aid is fake

Claim: The Department of Education (DepEd) will give P5,000 in cash assistance to students officially enrolled for school year 2024 to 2025. 

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim was made by the Facebook page “DSWD Announcement,” which has 1,700 followers and has previously posted fake scholarship announcements and dubious registration links.

The post was shared to the Facebook group “4p’s Updates” with 449,000 members. As of writing, the post has 154 reactions, 88 comments, and 10 shares.

The supposed announcement features the DepEd logo and a photo of the newly-appointed education secretary Senator Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara.

According to the post, all students from the elementary to college levels can receive cash assistance for school supplies. The post also includes a supposed registration link.

The facts: The supposed cash aid from DepEd is fake. The department has previously debunked similar fake posts in an advisory last May 4. 

Upon checking, the link from the Facebook post doesn’t lead to the official DepEd website or any Philippine government site. Instead, it redirects to an unverified blog website with an online form asking for personal information. This redirection is a potential phishing tactic to steal sensitive information for use in fraudulent activities. (READ: Phishing 101: How to spot and avoid phishing)

DepEd has consistently reminded the public to be vigilant against fake posts and obtain updates only from its official social media channels and online platforms. In May, the department also warned school officials, teachers, and the public about a fake graduation message from resigned education secretary Vice President Sara Duterte that circulated as the graduation season began.

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DepEd mandate: The post claims that students from all grade levels, including college students, are eligible to register for the stipend. However, DepEd’s mandate is limited to primary and secondary education, according to Republic Act 9155. Meanwhile, the governing body for tertiary education is the Commission on Higher Education, as mandated in Republic Act 7722.

DepEd assistance: DepEd previously told Rappler that it offers only the following assistance and subsidy programs:

• Education Contracting Service program, which offers subsidies for qualified junior high school learners in Grades 7 to 10 in participating schools
• Senior High School (SHS) Voucher program, which supports Grades 11 to 12 learners in participating private or non-DepEd public SHS 
• Joint Delivery Voucher Program, which supports Grade 12 learners taking the technical-vocational livelihood (TVL) track in public senior high schools “which have been identified as having inadequate facilities, equipment, tools, and teachers relevant to the implementation of TVL specializations.”

Debunked: Rappler has debunked fake posts on scholarship programs supposedly offered by various government institutions:

• FACT CHECK: DepEd doesn’t offer up to P10,000 scholarship via online forms
• FACT CHECK: Link for scholarship program posted by fake Landbank page
• FACT CHECK: Link for ‘CHED Scholarship Program 2024’ is fake

– Shane Cameron/Rappler.com

Shane Cameron is a Rappler intern. She is studying Development Communication at the University of the Philippines Los Baños.

Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. You may also report dubious claims to the #FactsFirstPH tipline by messaging Rappler on Facebook or Newsbreak via Twitter direct message. You may also report through our Viber fact check chatbot. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.