By Benjamin Pulta
MANILA – The latest batch of 44 agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is expected to help crack down on emerging trends in cybercrime, NBI Director Jaime Santiago said Monday.
In an interview with reporters, Santiago said Batch 52 of the NBI Academy composed of 32 lawyers, 10 accountants and two licensed criminologists will undergo training in information technology (IT) forensics from Australian experts.
“(M)ahusay ang Australian sa cybercrime (The Australians have proven competence on cybercrime). We have an existing memorandum of agreement,” he said.
“(A)lam nyo naman, ang krimen ngayon ay cybercrime na. Yan ang bagong trend. Buong mundo, hindi lang dito sa Pilipinas. Kaya, kailangan talaga kami magsumikap kami, mag-advance kami, one step ahead dito sa mga cybercrime violators na ito (You know crime today is cybercrime. It is the emerging trend globally not just in the Philippines. So, we must endeavor and advance to ensure we are one step ahead of the cybercrime violators),” he added.
Besides the Australian police, Santiago said Philippine law enforcers are also working closely with the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol,) the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, and other foreign counterparts in the forensic analysis of electronic gadgets seized from cybercrime suspects.
Meanwhile, Santiago said the NBI is coordinating with the Department of Information and Communications Technology, the National Telecommunications Commission and other government offices to address the issue of fake news.
“Yung pakikipag-coordinate with other government agencies, nag-usap-usap na kami kung paano namin once and for all masawata itong mga fake news spreader, mga bloggers na bibigay ng fake news at saka yung creators na makapag-create lang kahit hindi tama yung ginagawa nila (We are coordinating with other government agencies. We discussed how to stop once and for all fake news spreaders, bloggers who spread fake news and creators of malicious content),” he added.
The NBI is also looking into the possibility of an organized funded action prompting the spread of fake news.
“Tinitingnan namin, bakit dumadami. Bakit parang iisa ang tema nila? Sumasakay sa kaguluhan ng ating political atmosphere. Hindi dapat mangyari. Magugulo ang ating bayan, malilito ang ating mga mamamayan (We are looking why it is spreading. Why do they have a single theme? They are riding on issues in the political atmosphere. That should not happen. Our country will be put in chaos and the people wlll get confused).” Santiago said. (PNA)
