PCG website remains secure, says Balilo amid reported hacking attempts

Commodore Armand Balilo, PCG spokesperson

MANILA, Philippines — The website of Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is still safe from manipulations by alleged China-based computer hackers.

PCG spokesperson Rear Admiral Armand Balilo said a Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) personnel informed the Coast Guard about the alleged attempt to break into the website of PCG.

But Balilo said, “So far, we have not monitored anything.”

“Our website remains secure,” he said in a statement.

“We will ensure that the website is secure, that there is enough firewall to prevent it from being infiltrated by hackers,” he noted.

“While the website is for public consumption, we do not want hackers polluting our site with fake news and making it appear that we authored the spread of falsehoods,” Balilo explained.

“We must also protect the site from computer viruses,” he added.

The internet protocol address (IP) of the supposed hackers was said to have been traced in a place in China.

The perpetrators reportedly attempted to breach the systems of DICT, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and even the official website of President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.