MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF), the private sector-led disaster resilience agency formed by the country’s top conglomerates, has tapped leading digital solutions provider e-PLDT in an effort to strengthen its disaster management capabilities.
The cyber security suite of solutions of e-PLDT was tapped by the PDRF particularly to enhance its defense against cyber attacks and future-proof its structure to allow it to focus on its business of saving lives during the many natural disasters that hit the country every year.
PDRF had tasked itself to play a role in different phases of disaster management such as response, recovery and rehabilitation.
The group, composed of over 80 private corporations and non-government organizations (NGOs), coordinates private sector solutions for disaster management.
“We’re now leading the idea that the private sector has a role to play in terms of disaster management. Private organizations like ours can go ahead and volunteer using our resources and core expertise to respond to and help rebuild places that have been hit by disasters,” said PDRF president Butch Meilly.
Leading a solid defense against cyber attacks is the PDRF’s first-of-its-kind emergency operations center, the world’s first national private sector-owned National Emergency Operations Center in Clark, Pampanga which is being utilized to monitor storms, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions across the Philippine archipelago.
With the critical information and the Emergency Operations Center processes, it calls for robust security measures that will protect its mission-critical data from potential cyber threats and attacks.
“The nature of the data that we handle is very sensitive. If there are any attempts to hack our system or steal our data, we need to have robust cyber security technologies in place which only ePLDT was able to provide,” said Meilly.
To help PDRF remain prepared for both natural and cyber disasters alike, the organization penned a partnership with ePLDT for its cyber security solutions.
Help Batanes
Vice President Leni Robredo urged Filipinos, including those based abroad, to donate for the victims of the recent earthquakes in Batanes.
In her Sunday program over radio station dzXL, Robredo specifically appealed for food items, tents, as well as emergency lights and generator sets.
“Since Batanes is very far from the main island of Luzon, it would be really hard to send things there. I think, ultimately, they will be needing additional food. That’s the immediate need,” she said.
Robredo said Filipinos abroad may also send cash assistance through the provincial government to purchase emergency relief goods for thousands of displaced families. – With Helen Flores