The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) claims it had no role in the recent cyberattacks that happened to Bulatlat and Altermidya, two alternative news sites that have been accused by the Duterte administration as fronts for communist-terrorist groups.
According to a June 22 report by the Swedish digital forensic group Qurium Media Foundation, these sites suffered frequent denial attacks along with another red-tagged organization, Karapatan.
Qurium also determined that an IP address used for these attacks belong to The Philippine Research, Education, and Government Information Network, a research network under DOST.
In response, the DOST published a statement to deny involvement in the cyberattacks. The DOST also added that just because it was one of their IP addresses identified in the attacks does not necessarily mean the agency was the perpetrator.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said it’s unfair to link the cyberattacks to the government, but it will be investigated as cyberattacks are illegal pursuant to the Cyber Crimes Act.
Bulatlat claims the attacks were politically motivated. The three sites have also urged the agency to conduct an investigation and share its findings publicly.