Need for secure Web Hosting
Hackers claiming to be part of “Anonymous Philippines” defaced several central and local government websites on Sunday, 3 November, to express their discontent at how the Philippine government is handling the “pork barrel” scam.
Secure Web Hosting.
The Hacktivist group said it infiltrated 38 government websites to promote a planned “Million Mask March” happening today, 5 November.
According to the ICT Office of the Department of Science and Technology (ICTO-DOST), the latest round of government website defacements are proof that secure web hosting is needed by both central and local government agencies.
Early this year, President Aquino issued Administrative Order 39 mandating government agencies to migrate to the Government Web Hosting Service (GWHS) of ICTO-DOST to provide agencies with greater protection against cyber attacks.
While the migration to the GWHS is still ongoing, the agency said that apart from achieving a significant reduction of costs, another benefit is the assurance of security and “peace of mind.
The Philippine government has appealed to the hacktivist group not to stage another series of website defacements as many citizens are relying on government websites for critical information and online services.
“Should hacktivist groups wish to promote their event today, there are other ways to do that rather than hacking into government websites. Hackers who are proven to have violated the E-Commerce Act will be liable for their actions,” said Louis Casambre, Executive Director of the ICTO-DOST.
Apart from the Philippines the website of Straits Times, a local newspaper in Singapore, was temporarily shut last Friday after being hacked by “Anonymous Singapore”.
As a precaution, Singapore’s government agencies have been put on alert by the Government IT Security Incident Response Team should any cyber attacks occur.