The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the Senate Electronic Data Processing and Management Information System (EDP-MIS) have confirmed that the Senate website was defaced, but no sensitive or confidential information was compromised.
Limited to public pages
According to the initial investigation, the incident was limited to the public-facing portion of the website, which contains documents and information accessible to the public. The group 'Nullsec Philippines' claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that their goal is to promote transparency and accountability.
Precautionary measures
As a precaution, the Senate website was temporarily placed under maintenance while security validation and restoration are being conducted. The DICT, Senate, Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, and other agencies are also conducting a forensic investigation to identify those responsible.
If found guilty, they may face charges for violating the Cybercrime Prevention Act or Republic Act No. 10175. The incident occurred days after Senate President Pro Tempore Sherwin Gatchalian warned of a possible threat to the Senate amid ongoing political tensions.
