PLDT, Inc. and technology company Microsoft announced on Tuesday a partnership aimed at strengthening the country’s security infrastructure against cyber threats.
“Security is at an inflection point as cyberattacks become more sophisticated and digital attack surfaces exponentially increase. We believe that anything less than comprehensive security is no security at all,” Microsoft Philippines Country General Manager Andres Ortola said in an e-mailed statement.
Under the partnership, the two companies will work together through Microsoft’s Cyber Threat Intelligence Program (CTIP), which was created in 2013. CTIP collects and distributes actionable cyber intelligence.
“CTIP data are also engineered into specific Microsoft products and services to help customers identify threats in their computing environments,” the technology company said.
The company also said that CTIP is driven by its Digital Crimes Unit, an international team of technical, legal, and business experts created in 2008 to combat cybercrime on a global scale.
“Its expertise and unique view into online criminal networks uncover evidence used as criminal referrals to law enforcement agencies throughout the world.”
The partnership also means that PLDT will have access to Microsoft’s Digital Crime Unit’s cyber threat intelligence in real time.
“This intelligence will provide better insights into criminal cyber infrastructure located within their jurisdiction. PLDT, in turn, with its network domain knowledge, can help in two-way sharing of intelligence to identify compromised infrastructure and alert impacted entities in the country to potential cybercrime threats,” Microsoft said.
According to Mr. Ortola, Microsoft’s Digital Crime Unit has completed 24 malware disruption operations worldwide to date.
This resulted in “millions of devices kept safe from cybercriminals and preventing millions in financial losses,” he added.
For his part, Angel T. Redoble, first vice-president, chief information security officer, and head of PLDT and Smart Communication’s Cyber Security Operations Group, said: “Our mature and sophisticated threat intelligence operations is one of the keys and most robust pillars of the PLDT group’s cybersecurity structure.”
“We are glad to partner with Microsoft to help fortify our strong cyber threat intelligence operations, and to help us better protect our customers in particular, and the country’s cyber defenses in general,” he added.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Arjay L. Balinbin
