Lacson, Pacquiao: Comelec should open security system for experts, political parties’ audit

Presidential aspirants and Senators Panfilo Lacson and Manny Pacquiao on Tuesday said the Commission on Elections (Comelec) must open its security system to experts and political parties for third party audit.

The lawmakers made the remark following reports of alleged hacking of the Comelec server, supposedly compromising the integrity of the 2022 national and local elections.

In a statement, Lacson said his in-house Comelec-accredited cybersecurity team is currently conducting its own probe despite the limited access to information.

He said finding out who were behind the alleged hacking is already a “material information” to establish the motive and who will benefit from the incident.

For now, Lacson said the public must wait for the authors of the article to show proof and substantiate their hacking claims.

“That said, the Comelec should clarify the veracity of the hacking incident and be forthright with its findings. More importantly, it should be open to letting experts and related stakeholders help strengthen the security system - including our cybersecurity experts and those of other aspirants. Only through transparency and accountability can we guarantee the integrity of the upcoming elections,” Lacson said.

“Our elections on May 9 could not have come at a more critical time. This is not just about the individual candidates, but about upholding our democracy which, if the hacking turns out to be true, is gravely being threatened,” he added.

Independent audit

Pacquiao likewise called for the poll body to allow political parties to conduct an independent and third party audit on the extent of the alleged hacking.

The lawmaker also called for a congressional oversight on the incident, noting that this is not the first time that the Comelec system has been hacked.

This, he said, shows very serious security flaws on the poll body’s computer system.

“Hindi na ito dapat palampasin at kailangang magpaliwanag ang Comelec kung ano ang totoong pangyayari at kung ano ang epekto nito sa darating na halalan. Kailangan din nating malaman kung may nakahandang plano ang Comelec kung sakaling nakompromiso ang ating automated polling system,” he said.

(We can’t let this pass and the Comelec must explain what really happened and what would be the effect of this incident on the upcoming elections. We also need to know if the Comelec has plans in case the automated polling system has been compromised.)

Former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., another presidential aspirant, also called for a congressional oversight on the alleged hacking incident.

He said his camp is keenly observing the developments on the alleged hacking on the Comelec systems.

“We do not intend to immediately jump into any conclusion that could lead to undermining or discrediting the preparations and the conduct of the May 9 general elections,” he said.

“For now, we call on the Comelec Steering Committee and the Joint Congressional Oversight Committee (JCOC) to convene, initiate the probe and work to ensure the integrity of the systems and of the forthcoming elections,” he added.

Meanwhile, Senator Risa Hontiveros, who is running for reelection in Eleksyon 2022, emphasized the importance of “protecting the data privacy in databanks under the care of the government and private agencies.”

She noted the previous incident where voters’ data were leaked and compromised.

“We cannot afford to let it all happen again let alone allow these sensitive information to fall into the hands of unscrupulous individuals,” she said.

“As holders of these information that the public has entrusted to them, it is Comelec’s duty to protect the information from security breaches, and to preserve the integrity of the electoral process,” she added.

Another reelectionist in the Senate said the incident is “worth looking into by the proper authorities.”

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said that the poll body’s annual budget should include the necessary IT infrastructure, noting that the law already provides for an automated system of voting to ensure that cyber security requirements are provided so that the results will not be compromised.

“The Comelec, just like any other government institution that has in its safekeeping sensitive and very important voters’ information, is likely to be targeted by hackers especially with the elections just around the corner. This should have been anticipated early on,” he said.

Gatchalian, a victim of online hacking himself, said this report is alarming as several incidents of security breach were all over the news.

“May panahon pa para tugunan ang mga maaaring depekto sa kasalukuyang sistema ng Comelec. Mabigat na pasanin ito dahil kapakanan ng higit sa 100 milyong Pilipino sa susunod na anim na taon ang nakasalalay sa darating na May 9, 2022 elections,” he said.

(There’s already time to resolve the possible defects in the system of Comelec. This is a huge burden as the welfare of over 100 million Filipinos in the next six years depend on the May 9, 2022 elections.)

On Monday, the Comelec said it was working to validate a newspaper report that hackers downloaded 60 gigabytes of data from the poll body’s systems.

Comelec spokeperson James Jimenez said the authors of the report had been invited  to shed light on their allegations, “particularly with regard to the 'verification' they claim to have carried out.” — RSJ/BM, GMA News