The National Privacy Commission (NPC) and the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to synergize their efforts in combating and preventing the use of information and communication technology (ICT) for criminal and unauthorized purposes.
The agreement, which was sealed on December 9, 2022, was signed by privacy commissioner John Henry D. Naga and CICC executive director Alexander K. Ramos.
The NPC and CICC jointly resolved “to counter the use of ICTs for criminal and unauthorized purposes; and to foster inter-agency cooperation and resource sharing towards prevention, suppression, and prosecution of cybercrimes and data privacy breaches.”
“The Memorandum of Agreement between the National Privacy Commission and the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center is the culmination of our agencies’ mutual ambition to further protect the integrity of the Philippines’ digital transformation journey. The NPC is committed to work with CICC to ensure the safe and secure integration of digital services and processes into all areas of organizations and businesses,” Naga said.
The MOA enables effective joint action in data protection and cybercrime law, and data privacy law enforcement. Also, it allows the NPC to access resources, technical expertise, and institutional and international linkages of the National Cybercrime Hub (NCH) to fulfill its mandate related to data privacy and protection.
As part of the MOA’s compliance with the Data Privacy Act (DPA) of 2012, the NPC will participate in the NCH activities, which the CICC established to build a network that gathers law enforcement and government agencies, academe, industry experts, and international law enforcement and government partners for more effective inter-agency and stakeholder coordination, and resource sharing towards the prevention of cybercrimes.
Data privacy lawyers from the NPC will be assigned in the NCH to provide inputs to ensure compliance with the DPA. In addition, the NPC shall allow resource sharing for the accomplishment of the objectives and scope of the MOA.
