Safeguarding every Filipino’s ‘right to be left alone’

(UPDATED) THE Philippines has one of the poorest privacy safeguards in the world, according to the UK-based human rights group Privacy International (PI) in a forum organized last week by the Foundation for Media Alternatives (FMA).

On a scale of one to five, with one as “consistently upholding human rights standards” and five denoting “endemic surveillance,” the Philippines scored 1.8 in Privacy International’s 2007 National Privacy Ranking.

Forty seven countries in PI’s survey on global privacy were evaluated across 14 criteria. The Philippines ranked lowest in privacy enforcement, identity cards and biometrics, data-sharing, communication interception, and government access to data.

According to Privacy International, financial data protections have been undermined, ID plans are being revived, and illegal wiretapping has continued in recent years in the Philippines. (see table)

Malaysia, Russia, China, along with the United States, United Kingdom, Thailand, Taiwan, and Singapore, scored the lowest. Greece, Romania and Canada, meanwhile, ranked as having adequate safeguards against abuse.

The latest rankings indicated an overall worsening of privacy protection across the world, reflecting an increase in surveillance and a declining performance on privacy safeguards. The results also showed an increasing trend among governments to archive data on the geographic, communications and financial records of all their citizens and residents, which led to the conclusion that all citizens, regardless of legal status, are under suspicion.

‘Room for improvement’

Despite the country’s poor ranking, PI director Simon Davies says there is still room for improvement, referring to the pending bills on privacy.

The bills once passed, said Davies, will add teeth to constitutional provisions and provide a more comprehensive protection to citizens’ right to privacy.

“More than any country in the region, the Philippines acutely understands the relationship of power between the state and the citizens,” he said. “I have a view of the Philippines as a passionate and a sensitive country that understands the very core of privacy.”

Alan Alegre, FMA executive director, noted that while the right to privacy is recognized in the Bill of Rights, violations persist. “Thus, it is important to raise awareness of privacy issues,” he said.

Introduced by Camarines Norte Representative Liwayway Vinzons-Chato, the privacy bill — also known as the “Data Protection Act” — seeks to regulate how an individual’s personal information is used and to protect it from misuse in both private and governmental information and communication systems.

The bill will also provide a set of rules prohibiting the misuse of personal data without preventing it from being used for legitimate or beneficial purposes.

A National Data Protection Commission will also be created to ensure that data protection principles are followed strictly.

The privacy bill shall penalize the use of personal data without the consent or authority of the subject, malicious reporting of any personal data, and the breach of confidentiality when information has been published or reported by media.

Vinzons-Chato emphasized that personal information must be “obtained fairly and used only for the original purpose specified.” It must be accurate, up-to-date and not transferred without consent.

Privacy International supports the pending bill, pointing out that the Philippines can lead the world if it is handled carefully and sensitively.

“The Philippines could actually jump in with new initiatives in privacy protection that actually suit the 21st century,” said Davies.

‘Information’ technology

Privacy International senior fellow Dr. Gus Hosein explained that issues in privacy have also been fueled largely by the emergence of a profitable surveillance industry dominated by global information technology companies.

Davies thus remarked, “Think very carefully before engaging in new technologies because either they won’t work, or dangerously, they will work in ways never expected.”

In the Philippines, the advent of new technologies has made it very easy to collect, analyze and disseminate information, but this has also become a cause for concern when information is misused and abused.

The Supreme Court Department of Justice has already successfully prosecuted two convictions cases of cybercrime — a case of web hacking and credit card identity theft.

The enactment of the cybercrime bill seeks to prevent further damages when technology becomes a tool for crime.

The bill, also known as the “Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2005,” aims to safeguard the integrity of computer and computer systems, and the availability of information stored therein from all forms of misuse by making such conducts punishable by law.

Under the proposed legislation, cybercrime will range from illegal access, computer sabotage, computer forgery to computer-facilitated crimes such as cybersex, producing child pornography, and violations of the Intellectual Property Code.

Any person found guilty will be punished with a fine, imprisonment, or both.