BIZ BUZZ: New DICT chief cracks the whip
One month into the job, technocrat Henry Aguda has shared a preview of what he would like to accomplish as the new Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) secretary.
In this era of hyperscalers, his key priorities are ICT jobs, connectivity, investments and cybersecurity, Aguda told Biz Buzz in a chance interview.
Pretty soon, the ICT veteran is set to launch what he calls as “good vibes” internet policy.
“We need to make the internet a safe haven for better news,” he said.
“Ayokong gamitin ’yung other term (I don’t like to use that other term),” he added.
This clearly means he will run after the troll farms that are spewing fake news and won’t spare those that are propagating scams.
“We need to make sure that the scams are taken out.”
Reuters, quoting a United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime research, recently reported that “criminal networks that emerged in Southeast Asia in recent years, opening sprawling compounds housing tens of thousands of workers, many trafficked and forced to scam victims around the world, have evolved into a sophisticated global industry.”
In the Philippines, the mandatory SIM (subscriber identity module) card registration hardly moved the needle, as bad actors have continued to proliferate.
How exactly will the DICT do it? “We have tools, policies that are going to be in place soon,” Aguda said.
