PHL hackers deface gov't website with vague pro-privacy protest

A Philippine-based hacker group struck again Tuesday afternoon, defacing a government website with an Independence Day-themed attack.

 

The website of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (www.pnri.dost.gov.ph) was yet again the victim of the latest attack by the group "PrivateX."

 

Visitors to the PNRI site were diverted to a third-party site (http://organicx.co.za/PRIVATEX/) where PrivateX aired vague protests against the government's proposed cyber-security measures.

 

"In such instances, the said bill could evenly be more considered as an exercise for the benefit of a few empowered who have the way and will to punish people who offend them, and could also be a potential threat to the freedom of expression since it can be used as a tool of censorship," the group said on its Independence Day-themed page.

 

The group added the bill "can greatly be used in the near future to condone further implementations of worse forms of censorship."

 

"We're not against the government's intention to combat fraudulence, related forms of it and other serious cyber crimes, but we're absolutely against its provision that has something to do with the internet's freedom of expression," it vaguely added.

 

The group said no information or files had been stolen or destroyed in the attack on the PNRI website, which had been a target of past hacker attacks.

 

It ended its message with a "Happy Independence Day" greeting.

 

Earlier, senate science committee chairman Edgardo Angara had stressed that Senate Bill 2796 is not a threat to basic freedoms and instead will protect from abuse in cyberspace.

 

The bill seeks to establish a legal framework for the investigation, apprehension and prosecution of perpetrators of such Internet-related crimes as identity theft, fraud, hacking and child pornography.

 

Angara added he was especially mindful about protecting civil rights and freedoms of enshrined in the Constitution.

 

"Some claim that the bill lends itself to abuse and leads to the encroachment of people's Internet rights. But by putting up a legal framework and laying down the foundations for due process, the measure actually safeguards our rights and extends their protection into our digital space," he said in a news release.

 

"Clearly, the freedoms we enjoy from high-speed connectivity coincide with expanded opportunities to commit crimes. I sponsored the bill precisely because real harm can be done," he added.

 

He also stressed the bill is not a Philippine version of the controversial SOPA bill in the United States. — TJD, GMA News