A LAWMAKER pointed out the lack of certified experts and underinvestment in cyber security as among the factors that contributed to complacency and false sense of security in cybercrimes.
Rep. Alexie B. Tutor, Chair of the House Panel on Professional Regulation and Member of the House Committee on Information & Communications Technology, said the “shocking and deeply worrisome cyber attack on PhilHealth is a clear and present danger to the health security of all PhilHealth members nationwide.”
Tutor also said the country needs “cyber security strong enough to defend against, investigate, prosecute, and counterattack cybercriminals, especially of the ransomware and infiltration kind.”
“Kailangan ng hakbang na iyan sapagkat sobrang kaunti lamang ng Filipino IT experts on cyber security (it is just a tiny community) at lubhang mahal ang customized cyber security software, hardware, at architecture designs,” she noted.
Tutor lamented, “There is a global gap and Philippine shortage of cybersecurity professionals. The gap is estimated worldwide to be around 3.4 million. Here in the Philippines, there are only around 200 certified cyber security specialists. We have only 1.8 certified cyber security experts per million population. (Yes, nakakaawa ang Pilipinas. hindi man lang umabot sa 1000 ang bilang ng mga ekspertong certified sa cyber security; 200 lang sa buong bansa).”
”Certified cyber security professionals are the “properly trained soldiers at the frontlines” of defense and offense against cybercriminals,” she explained.
She added that cybersecurity “requires huge capital investments,” but the government “cannot do this alone. This needs public-private partnerships and foreign technical assistance from lenders like the Asian Development Bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency, and the World Bank.”
The World Bank said it recently approved a $600 million “digital policy loan” for the Philippines “to promote the digital transformation of government and digital infrastructure policies, expand financial inclusion through digital finance, and stimulate the growth of digital services. It will help the government digitize government operations and service delivery, foster competition in the digital infrastructure markets, and encourage the adoption of digital payments and financial services.”
“But while we wait for the capital investments in cyber security, we need swift measures to make sure vulnerable websites have active defenses and a protective buffer between the websites and the agency databases. There must also be redundancies to ensure public services are not interrupted or can be back online swiftly,” Tutor said.
