By Dean Aubrey Caratiquet
“Ang pakiusap namin sa publiko, manatili lamang po tayong kalmado. Kung bumagal ang serbisyo, don’t panic. Hintayin niyo lang pong lumipas iyan.”
With the influx of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks expected throughout Wednesday, Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Henry Aguda reassured the citizenry that the agency is doing everything possible to mitigate the possible effects of this “traffic flood” on online services across the country.
In a press briefing, Secretary Aguda distinguished DDoS from a data breach, noting that the former is akin to a traffic jam in the internet world, leading to slower loading times for websites and applications—but clarified that no personal information would land in the wrong hands should somebody experience this phenomenon.
Aguda told the media, “Ang mahalaga, hindi ito pagnanakaw ng impormasyon. Nade-deny lang po ‘yung paggamit ng digital assets. Temporary lang din po ito, dahil nakahanda naman po ang gobyerno at saka mga critical infrastructure providers natin na labanan ang DDoS—[meron po silang,] tinatawag diyan, anti-DDoS equipment.”
A DDoS attack is an invasive attack that disrupts the normal traffic of a targeted server, which is accomplished when a bad actor makes use of compromised computer systems and other Internet of Things (IoT) devices to overwhelm a server or its surrounding infrastructure with a flood of internet traffic.
The DICT Chief reiterated that through Oplan Cyberdome, the agency remains on top of monitoring this situation throughout the day. As of press time, no government agencies or critical sectors were reported to have been affected by DDoS attacks.
Aguda, however, pointed out that attempts were made by bad actors to cripple the online services of banks but were successfully intercepted by anti-DDoS mechanisms put in place by the DICT.
He concluded his remarks by emphasizing that apart from causing inconveniences as the worst-case scenario, this nefarious activity will not affect the Philippine economy and compromise other critical sectors of the government.
Under the Oplan Cyberdome, DICT will be working in close collaboration with the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Council (CICC), National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), law enforcement agencies, and other private sector partners to ensure prompt response and provide adequate protection for online platforms.
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