The government must accelerate reforms in the country’s cybersecurity framework after recent lapses revealed severe vulnerabilities involving sensitive data, a group of cybersecurity experts said.

The Philippine Institute of Cyber Security Professionals (PICSPro) said the country must move away from “reactive, fragmented, and ceremonial approaches” to cybersecurity.

“What we are seeing today is the result of years of underinvestment, lack of coordination, and misplaced priorities,” said PICSPro chairman Angel Redoble.

“Cybersecurity is national security, economic security, and public safety. We cannot treat it as a PR [public relations] exercise,” he added.

Redoble said recent breaches, such as the massive data compromise at the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), are indications of a serious security lapse.

He noted that an incident of that magnitude should have prompted an immediate and comprehensive government-wide audit, but “no such coordinated action was taken.”

He also said the reported hacking of data in the systems of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is further proof that the country’s cybersecurity systems are far from adequate.

This, he said, reflects symptoms of deeper systemic weaknesses rather than isolated lapses that could be dismissed.

Redoble emphasized that this makes it critical to establish a multi-pillar framework to foster globally aligned laws, standardized security protocols, coordinated national incident-response systems, and continuous human-capacity development.

“Without these foundations, the Philippines will remain highly vulnerable to both domestic and international cyber threats,” he said.

Redoble, however, said these efforts require a whole-of-nation approach anchored on robust policy, consistent standards, reliable infrastructure, and a highly trained cybersecurity workforce.

He added that the Philippines must also strengthen international cooperation since cyberthreats are now transnational in nature.

“Our goal is to help the Philippines build a truly resilient cybersecurity ecosystem—one that protects our institutions, our economy, and our people,” Redoble said.

“We need coordinated reforms, not a patchwork of projects. That is the only way to defend the country from the new generation of cyber threats,” he added.