DICT denies eGovPH mobile app was hacked

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has denied that the government’s eGovPH mobile app was hacked, saying the alleged data leak was just a hoax.

DICT assistant secretary for legal affairs Renato Paraiso said in a statement that the eGovPH app remains secure, citing the initial investigation by the National Computer Emergency Response Team (NCERT) and the eGov development team.

“Results from the initial investigation made by NCERT and eGov showed that no large data transfer, user suspicious behavior or network activity anomaly in the eGovPH system were observed,” Paraiso added.

However, the official asked the public to be vigilant when sharing content online and to rely only on official department channels for accurate information and updates.

The statement was issued after the Philippine-based cybersecurity enthusiast group Deep Web Konek, through its blog Kukublan Philippines, claimed that there was a potential data breach in the eGovPH system, which allegedly may have affected around 200,000 users.