With over 600GB worth of sensitive PhilHealth data exposed by hackers, curious individuals might be tempted to download it. The NBI has gone ahead and told GMA News that you should not attempt to download the leaked PhilHealth data.

Based on the analysis made by NBI’s Cybercrime division, Cybercrime Chief Jeremy Lontoc said that aside from sensitive information that includes contact numbers, PhilHealth ID numbers, and even copies of passport IDs, the leaked PhilHealth data also contained ransomware and phishing links. Those who try to download the leaked PhilHealth data also run the risk of getting their devices infected with the same virus and malware that affected the said government agency.

Beyond the more obvious reason, Lontoc also explained that those who plan to download the leaked PhilHealth data can also land in jail under the Data Privacy Act. This is stated under Section 25 as “Unauthorized Processing of Personal Information and Sensitive Personal Information.” The National Privacy Commission can file a case against those who attempt to download any part of PhilHealth’s leaked data, and the penalty for that offense includes 1 to 3 years of imprisonment and Php 500,000 to Php 2,000,000 in fines. The NPC can track those who download the leaked data by looking through their IP addresses.

At this point, the NBI highly urges all PhilHealth members to change not just their passwords, but also their emails as well.

The ransomware issue is a big concern in the country: after PhilHealth, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) is the latest government agency that has been affected by hacking. According to the PSA, only its Community-Based Monitoring System (CBMS) was affected by the data breach. The PSA PhilSys system, which is responsible for the implementation of the National ID, and the Civil Registration System (CRS), which is used as the database for all birth certificates, are not affected by the latest data breach.