MANILA, Philippines – A Philippine security official said on Tuesday, January 7, that “no sensitive information was compromised” despite a report that said China state-sponsored hackers had allegedly infiltrated the computer systems of Malacañang.
“Based on assessment of our cybersecurity experts, no sensitive information was compromised,” said the National Security Council’s spokesperson Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya in a message to Rappler.
Malaya was responding to questions about the reported infiltration of the executive branch’s computer systems from 2023 to 2024 — an effort that, according to a Bloomberg report, resulted in the theft of military documents, including those related to the South China Sea.
China claims almost all of the South China Sea, including areas that are part of the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“There was a hacking attempt which is very common on government databases but it was a failure and that all sensitive information is secure,” added Malaya.
Department of Information and Communications Technology Secretary Ivan Uy earlier told a press briefing in Malacañang that “no current information has been compromised,” even as he confirmed that there are “always attempts” to attack government databases, including that of the executive.
“What we have seen so far are old data from many years ago that are being regurgitated, recycled just to make an impression that they were successful in doing so,” he said.
Bloomberg said the attack on the Philippine executive branch was part of a bigger effort to compromise several Philippine institutions. China’s Foreign Ministry has denied knowledge of the supposed attack, adding that Beijing “consistently opposed all forms of hacking and cyberattacks,” as well as “groundless speculation for political purposes.”
Beijing’s Embassy in Manila has yet to respond to media inquiries regarding the report.
Philippine-China ties have grown tense under the Marcos adminsitration, primarily over disputes in the West Philippine Sea, or part of the South China Sea that includes the Philippine EEZ. Controntations between the two countries have made headlines locally and internationally, as the Philippines has become more assertive in upholding its rights in those waters, as well as exposing China’s actions.
Several confrontations have turned dangerous, with the China Coast Guard using an assortment of tools to stop Philippine missions — the most extreme of which happened on June 17, 2024, when its coast guard boarded, and destroyed the inflatable vessels of elite Philippine soldiers trying to resupply an outpost in Ayungin Shoal. – Rappler.com
