DOST, PNP systems also hacked, DICT says

 The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) on Firday confirmed that the systems of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) were hacked.

“Dito sa DOST, we confirm na mukhang breaches nga ito. Initial report is that there are some experts' data, [personal identifiable information] ng mga experts,” DICT Undersecretary Jeffrey Ian Dy told Dobol B TV.

(For DOST, we confirm possible breaches. Initial report is that there are some experts' data involved)

“Meron din kasing report sa PNP, pero iyan ay sobrang luma naman iyan so kumbaga hina-hype lang nila pero lumang tugtugin na rin iyon,” added Dy.

(There is also a report in PNP but that is so old. Hackers are just hyping it.)

While the data breach is “dangerous” for the experts, Dy claimed  that the leak is “a small scale type”.

“We're going to advise DOST to also advise the people whose credentials were leaked to make the proper defenses or mitigations,” he said.

According to him, around 10,000 records of experts were leaked. He said DOST has been tapping experts from the public and private sector.

Dy, meanwhile, said that they continue to protect and monitor other vital information from the DOST data. Among them are the department’s research and development efforts.

He said some of these are being pitched to private companies for commercial use.

Earlier, it was reported that Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) and the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) were hit by a cyber attack, which also resulted in the leak of some of their data.

Dy said the suspects who posted and leaked the data from PSA and DOST are the same.

According to Dy, the DICT had received the report on the hacking of the DOST system as early as September. He said the department just prioritized addressing the issue in PhilHeath and PSA. 

In a statement, the DOST said the recent data leaked in its OneExpert portal were publicly available like “names of technical experts, their email addresses as well as users with their email addresses.”

“While this incident may cause concern among the affected individuals and the public, we would like to assure everyone that no sensitive personal information has been compromised,” it said.

“While the list of clients or users is not readily accessible through the portal, the website’s use is diligently monitored, reported, and are made available as part of DOST official records,” it added.

The OneExpert portal serves as a publicly available registry of Filipino experts which allows clients to have more access to their services, according to the DOST.

The DOST said it is implementing measures to strengthen the security of its information systems.—Joviland Rita/ VAL/AOL, GMA Integrated News