President Marcos on Wednesday, Nov. 29, vowed to look into the proposed Cybersecurity Act, Anti-Mule, and the Online Site Blocking Acts after he recognized “a great need for structural requirements in legislation” in terms of the country’s current infrastructures against cyber threats.
 

President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. listens to the insights of PSAC lead convenor and Aboitiz Group President and Chief Executive Officer Sabin Aboitiz during a meeting in Malacañang. Also in the photo are PSAC Digital Infra lead Henry Aguda, Presidential Adviser for Investment and Economic Affairs Frederick Go, Trade Secretary Alfredo Pascual, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, and PLDT/Smart Communications President and CEO Al Panlilio. (PSAC photo)

“We’ll see how far along these are… We will talk with the leadership of the Legislature and see how we can move it along quickly,” he told Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) lead convenor Sabin Aboitiz and PSAC - Digital Infra Sector lead Henry Aguda during a Palace meeting.

During the meeting, the PSAC officials also presented key recommendations to the President to bolster the country's cyber defenses.

The PSAC Digital Infrastructure sector convened to tackle the critical issue of fortifying the nation's digital landscape against escalating cyber challenges.

Aguda emphasized the need for proactive measures in boosting the country’s capacity against cybersecurity threats.

"In our meeting with the President, we underscored the critical need for proactive measures to safeguard our nation's critical information infrastructure. The recommendations we presented to President Marcos aim to fortify our defenses against evolving cyber threats, ensuring the resilience and security of our digital landscape,” he said.

PSAC Digital Infrastructure advocated strongly for an executive order mandating Minimum Information Security Standards for Critical Information Infrastructure in alignment with the National Cybersecurity Plan.

The council is also pushing for the certification of Senate Bill No. 1365, or the Cybersecurity Act, and Senate Bill No. 2039, or the Anti-Mule Act, as priority legislations.

According to the council, these bills have the potential to strengthen cybersecurity's legal framework and combat financial cybercrimes.

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) also backed the passage of SB 1365, or the Cybersecurity Act, because it will promote and increase the country’s cybersecurity resilience and improve its posture.

The legislation includes provisions for identifying and safeguarding critical information infrastructures (CIIs), as well as potential penalties for underperforming entities in observing the standards and practices to protect digital assets.

Meanwhile, the proposed Anti-Mule Act will prohibit money mules and other fraudulent acts involving bank accounts, e-wallets, and other financial accounts.

It aims to criminalize registering or opening an account using fake identity, selling or transferring an account to unauthorized persons, purchasing or using an account without being the owner, as well as recruitment of people to open accounts for fraudulent purposes.

The Online Site Blocking Bill will allow the blocking of websites that show pirated content in an aim to protect the creative industry and consumers from the dangers of online content piracy.

PSAC said it is also fully supportive of DICT’s efforts as it aims to establish a Multi-Sectoral Technical Working Group that would combat fraud and financial cyber threats.

The initiative will focus on creating a Mobile Device Database and Anti-Financial Crimes Command Center.

“I think that is basically what we are learning; we shouldn’t be shy about outsourcing because we don’t need to reinvent the wheel, which is being reinvented every day,” Marcos said.