China hackers foiled by DICT’s clever cyber defense

TLDR: The Philippine Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has reported that cybersecurity experts successfully prevented cyberattacks conducted by China-based hackers. The hackers attempted to take down the website of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, and the DICT’s investigation revealed that the cybercriminals were from China Unicom, a state-owned telecommunications company. While the involvement of the Chinese government has not been confirmed, the hackers were operating from within Chinese territory. The DICT’s information security arm also discovered espionage activities targeting the email addresses of President Marcos and other government agencies. The hackers were gathering information about the administrators but were ultimately stopped by the government’s cybersecurity experts. The DICT warns that these hackers are professionals who conduct long-term information gathering before launching attacks. The National Privacy Commission also emphasized its commitment to protecting the personal data of Filipinos.