Marcos gov’t to prioritize cybersecurity measure

By John Victor D. Ordoñez, Reporter

A BILL that seeks to boost Philippine cybersecurity has been added to the Marcos government’s list of priority measures, according to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), as Manila beefs up its defenses from hackers before midterm elections next year.

“We’ve consolidated it already and we’re just fine-tuning it,” DICT Secretary Ivan John E. Uy told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of a Foreign Affairs department event on Monday.

He said the measure was brought up during the seventh meeting of the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) at the presidential palace on Monday.

“We’re encouraging foreign investments as well as local investments in data centers because we’re seeing a huge uptake already for storage and processing of data, especially with AI (artificial intelligence),” he added.

“The government should establish a unified national framework to prevent, detect, respond to and recover from cyberincidents,” Ronald B. Gustilo, national campaigner for Digital Pinoys, said in a Viber message. “The bill should also push the government to develop protocols for collaboration among government agencies, the private sector and international partners.”

DICT Undersecretary Jeffrey Ian C. Dy earlier told reporters the National Cybersecurity bill would include fines and administrative penalties against groups that operate critical information infrastructure that fail to report cyberattacks to the government.

In 2022, the Philippines only had about 200 cybersecurity professionals compared with 2,000 in Singapore, Mr. Uy earlier said, noting that 80% of Filipino cyberexperts work overseas.

The DICT chief has said the government is finding it hard to attract more cybersecurity experts due to lower pay at about P50,000 a month, compared with about P200,000 in the private sector.

The government has identified and addressed more than 20,144 vulnerabilities in state cybersecurity systems this year, DICT Undersecretary David L. Almirol, Jr. told a Senate hearing in October.

He also said his agency was considering proposing an executive order on protecting the government’s digital infrastructure from hackers and other cyberthreats.

The Philippine National Police’s Anti-Cybercrime Group earlier reported 4,469 cybercrime incidents in the country in the first quarter, up 21.84% from a year earlier.

Last year, the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. was hit by Medusa ransomware, with more than 600 gigabytes of data stolen by hackers.

The creation of a national cybersecurity agency, which could conduct regular audits of cybersecurity infrastructure, is crucial,” Dominic Vincent D. Ligot, founder of CirroLytix Research Services and a consultant for the Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Association of the Philippines, told BusinessWorld in an e-mail.

“These audits should ensure compliance with security standards without compromising individual rights and privacy,” he added.

WATER BODY
Meanwhile, on Monday’s LEDAC meeting, the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) pushed a bill that will create a Department of Water Resources (DWR) amid constant flooding and to boost farm output.

“By integrating the country’s governance and regulation of water resources, the DWR will contribute to national efforts to achieve comprehensive water security,” NEDA said in a statement.

The priority measure also seeks to set up a Water Regulatory Commission, a quasi-judicial body that will oversee water service providers.

The House of Representatives approved its version of the bill in December last year, while the Senate has yet to continue plenary debates on a counterpart bill.

“The recurring devastation caused by heavy typhoons necessitates that we prepare for our country’s future and safety,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said in the statement.

The NEDA Board last month approved a 65-month extension in the implementation of the Cavite Industrial Area-Flood Risk Management project, which was meant to be operational from October 2019 to April 2024.

It also approved a 63-month extension in the implementation of the fourth phase of the Pasig-Marikina River Channel Improvement project, which would be operational from this month until March 2031.

Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. has issued an executive order transferring the control of the National Irrigation Administration to his office, which is expected to pave the way for better irrigation projects.

NEDA said 29 of the 64 priority bills this year have been signed into law.

Public Works Secretary Manuel E. Bonoan earlier said the government had about 5,000 ongoing flood control projects this year. These are on top of the 5,521 flood control projects completed between July 2022 and May 2024, according Mr. Marcos.

Congress has been scrutinizing state flood-control projects after houses and people mostly in Metro Manila and nearby provinces were swept away by raging flood waters from tropical storms this year.

“The Department of Water Resources will be mandated to coordinate with relevant agencies on the construction of water projects that will improve our irrigation and flood management,” Mr. Balisacan said.