COMMITTEE on Public Services Chairman Raffy Tulfo asked concerned government agencies and telcos what measures and initiatives they have in place to address the poor state of internet service in the country and curtail cybercrimes, such as online hackings and text message hijackings.
During a Senate hearing held Jan. 15, the Senator from Isabela and Davao pointed out complaints and bad experiences of telco users regarding total outage, if not poor cellular phone signals, in establishments and areas owned or affiliated by the competitors of their registered telco network.
To ensure that the public is given enough signal services, Tulfo obliged the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to conduct strict monitoring of malls nationwide and work hand in hand with the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) to hold accountable the telcos in violation of the law. Tulfo also ordered the NTC to submit a report and plan of action by January 20.
Tulfo called out the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) for its lack of security and stringent monitoring of free public wifi spaces in the country particularly in malls and restaurants where common people would have easy access.
Tulfo also showed videos of victims who, after they accessed the said free wifi, lost control of their mobile phones due to hackers who managed to remotely control their cellphones and access sensitive information.
Tulfo also exposed a new technology used by hackers called “text hijacking” wherein hackers can easily intercept legitimate messages from an individuals’ text message conversation.
Despite promises of constant monitoring, Tulfo urged the DICT to ameliorate and upgrade cybersecurity programs and policies to ensure that no entity can be able to infiltrate the country’s cybersecurity infrastructure.
Tulfo also warned the public to take precautionary measures whenever accessing public wifi such as not clicking malicious links and immediately giving out sensitive information to questionable messages.
On the other hand, Tulfo ordered the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to look into the struggle of telcos applying for permits with local government units to establish cellular towers particularly in the provinces to ensure quality and up-to-speed signals for users in geographically disadvantaged areas.
Furthermore, the senator also discussed refund mechanisms of telcos to their users in the form of rebates, billing adjustments and other forms of compensation to ensure they are protected from unutilized internet services during disruptions.
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