Senator Mark Villar is calling for an investigation into the recent cyberattack on the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation’s website, which compromised the personal information of the members of PhilHealth.
Villar also condemned the cyberattack, stating that it is not just a significant case of information theft but part of a widespread attack on public health and welfare due to the inclusion of medical information of all PhilHealth members.
“This attack is not only a big case of information theft. This is just a part of a wider attack against public health and welfare because these attacks compromise the medical information of the members of PhilHealth,’’ according to Sen. Mark Villar.
Villar also expressed concern regarding the more than 24-hour downtime of PhilHealth’s system during the attack, saying that it has endangered the capacity of its members and beneficiaries to seek immediate medical assistance.
“The cyberattack against PhilHealth is not just an attack against a government institution. This is an attack against every individual who are members of PhilHealth and their right for a secured and accessible medical assistance,’’ Sen. Mark Villar stated.
The senator voiced his growing concern about a series of cyberattacks on various government institutions, with PhilHealth being the latest victim.
As a result, Villar has filed Senate Resolution No. 811 to investigate the said cyberattack and all other attacks on government websites.
To recall, on September 22, PhilHealth’s website was hit by a cyberattack from Medusa Ransomware, an international group of hackers known for its attacks on large organizations.
It demanded the government $300,000 so as not to expose the PhilHealth data it illegally obtained.
