DFA to privacy commission: We're in control of passport data


The Department of Foreign Affairs tells the National Privacy Commission that 'all passport data is safe'
Paterno Esmaquel II
Published 2:00 PM, January 21, 2019
Updated 2:00 PM, January 21, 2019
TOP DIPLOMAT. Foreign Secretary Teodoro 'Teddyboy' Locsin Jr faces the Commission on Appointments, November 28, 2018. File photo by Angie de Silva/Rappler
TOP DIPLOMAT. Foreign Secretary Teodoro 'Teddyboy' Locsin Jr faces the Commission on Appointments, November 28, 2018. File photo by Angie de Silva/Rappler
MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) assured the National Privacy Commission (NPC) on Monday, January 21, that "all passport data is safe" and under its custody, contrary to a previous claim by Foreign Secretary Teodoro "Teddyboy" Locsin Jr.
Locsin had said on January 8 that a previous contractor "took all" passport data when its contract was terminated, only for him to backtrack on January 15, saying there was no data taken after all.
"The Department assured the Commission that it takes extremely seriously the protection of the personal information of the public and that all passport data is safe," said the DFA in a statement on Monday.
"The Department remains in custody and control of passport data and that this has not been shared with or accessed by any unauthorized party," it added.
The DFA was represented by Data Protection Officer and Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Medardo Macaraig, Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Neil Frank Ferrer, and other officials in a meeting on Monday with the NPC.
The DFA representatives "made a full presentation on the passport process and assured the Commission that measures are in place to protect the personal data of passport applicants in the entire ISO-certified process."
The agency said it hopes to have addressed the NPC's concerns "and remains ready to cooperate, especially with Congress, in any other investigation to be conducted on this issue."
The reported loss of passport data, which came from Locsin himself, ignited a firestorm in a country still reeling from a data leak that involved 70 million voters' records in 2016.
In his first formal statement on the issue, Locsin said on January 15: "Only a Senate investigation will assure the public that there was no breach or loss of data. Until then, the Department can give no assurances on the safety and security of some data." – Rappler.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

POPCOM, gagamit ng ‘digital platforms’ para pagtibayin ang mga ugnayang pampamilya

Mas pinalalawig ng Komisyon sa Populasyon at Pagpapaunlad (POPCOM) ang adhikain nitong pagpapalaganap at pagpapabuti ng pakikipag-ugnayan ng mga nakakatandang Pilipino sa kanilang mga anak na nagdadalaga at nagbibinata. Nitong Setyembre 21, ang POPCOM ay nagsagawa ng isang “parent-teen talk webinar” gamit ang Zoom, kung saan ang isang “interactive program” ang nagbigay ng naaayon na kaalaman at kasanayan sa mga magulang, habang tumulong ito sa mga anak na teenager na maabot ang kanilang buong potensyal. Hinikayat din nito ang mga nanay at tatay na sumali sa malayang usapan, lalo na sa mga usapin ukol sa sex at sekswalidad, na nakikitang makakatulong upang bumaba ang mga bilang ng mga pagbubuntis sa hanay ng mga kabataan. Maaaring mapanood ang webinar sa https://youtu.be/lZ9jrJCjYas. Ayon kay Ikalawang Kalihim (Undersecretary) Juan Antonio A. Perez III, MD, MPH, “ang webinar ay naging isang tagapag-simula at ‘padaluyan’ ng pag-uu
Read more

In Cairo, senior Hamas officials discuss hostage deal with Egyptian intelligence chief ---By TOI STAFF, AGENCIES and LAZAR BERMAN

Delegation said led by terror group’s Qatar-based political leader Ismail Haniyeh; Wall Street Journal reports Hamas demanding 150 security prisoners for each female soldier A delegation of senior Hamas officials arrived in Cairo on Thursday for talks with Egyptian officials on a possible deal that would see the release of hostages held by terrorists in Gaza. The delegation was led by Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who lives in Qatar, and included senior members Mousa Abu Marzook and Khalil al-Hayya, the Qatar-based Al-Araby news outlet reported, citing an unnamed Egyptian source. The Hamas officials met with the head of Egyptian intelligence, Major General Abbas Kamel, to discuss the details of a hostage deal proposal that was presented to the Gaza terror group earlier this week by Qatari and Egyptian mediators. The outline of the deal was drawn up during a meeting in Paris last week in the presence of Israeli and US officials, as well as Qatari and Egyptian negotiators, a
Read more

Biden said set to make push for demilitarized Palestinian state as part of new doctrine ---By LAZAR BERMAN

New York Times’ Thomas Friedman, who’s close to the US administration, says emerging doctrine would include Saudi-Israeli normalization, 2-state solution, and campaign against Iran US President Joe Biden’s administration is homing in on a new doctrine involving an unprecedented push to immediately advance the creation of a demilitarized but viable Palestinian state, The New York Times’ Thomas Friedman reported on Thursday. The plan, Friedman wrote, “would involve some form of US recognition of a demilitarized Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip that would come into being only once Palestinians had developed a set of defined, credible institutions and security capabilities to ensure that this state was viable and that it could never threaten Israel.” White House officials “have been consulting experts inside and outside the US government about different forms this recognition of Palestinian statehood might take,” revealed Friedman. What he termed the new “Biden Doctrin
Read more