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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Lacson urges Comelec to safeguard Smartmatic vs hacking

Lacson urges Comelec to safeguard Smartmatic vs hacking

Published Jan 30, 2022 09:44 am

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) should make sure that its electronic systems are hack proof to ensure that the conduct of the May 2022 elections would not be compromised, presidential aspirant Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson said.

While its servers may not have been hacked, Lacson said the Comelec should remain vigilant against possible unauthorized access to its data.

The Partido Reporma chairman and standard bearer noted the poll body will soon be interfacing with contractor Smartmatic, whose system was believed to be compromised.

He pointed out that while his cybersecurity team's initial findings indicate extortion as the possible motive of the supposed hacking incident, the integrity of the May elections could be endangered if the Comelec does not put safeguards in place.

"Darating ang panahon na mag-interface yan. Pag nag-interface, maaaring ma-compromise din ang Comelec. Yan ang nakakatakot (The time will come that the Comelec and Smartmatic's systems will interface, and Comelec's systems may be affected if they are not patched. That is a scary scenario)," Lacson said in a Radio DWIZ interview on Saturday.

According to Lacson, his cybersecurity team is now studying the extent of the hack on Smartmatic's systems.

He also said Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center Undersecretary Cezar Mancao II has more explaining to do before lawmakers on the matter.

"Dapat lang talaga ipaliwanag lahat. Integridad ng eleksyon ang nakataya rito (They should really explain everything. The integrity of this year's elections is at stake here)," Lacson said.

"What if may isang kandidato na doon ibinenta kung anong nahawakan ng sindikato? Hindi ba napakadelikado (What if the hackers who are able to compromise Smartmatic sold the data to a candidate? Isn't that dangerous)?" he pointed out.

Related Tags

May 2022 elections presidential elections Comelec ping lacson national and local elections smartmatic
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