China can shut down the Philippines' national grid and telecommunications systems in the event of a conflict in the West Philippine Sea, a former Philippine official said Wednesday.

Rafael Alunan III, who served as interior and local government secretary under the late President Fidel V. Ramos, gave the warning during DAILY TRIBUNE's digital show "Straight Talk."

"They can shut down telecommunications also," Alunan said. "There's this technology that can shut down communications equipment. It's a remote technology."

He added: "Cyber warfare is part of hybrid warfare conducted worldwide. And even the Pentagon and the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) are being hacked. Then, obviously, we can be hacked."

Alunan's warning came amid heightened tensions between the Philippines and China over the disputed South China Sea. The Philippines calls part of the waters the West Philippine Sea.

Last week, the Armed Forces of the Philippines accused the Chinese navy of "dangerously" shadowing a Philippine ship during a standoff between the two countries.

Alunan said cyber warfare is a real threat that can "screw up various systems and extract data."

"They can penetrate your physical infrastructure, your military, government, and public service institutions. Cyber warfare can do a lot," he warned.

This year's report by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the United States said that China is the "broadest, most active, and persistent cyber espionage threat" to the US government and private sector networks.

Mitigation
China is "capable of launching cyberattacks that could disrupt critical infrastructure services within the United States, including against oil and gas pipelines and rail systems," the report said.

Alunan reckoned that the Philippine government is aware of the cyber threat and is taking steps to mitigate it. However, he said, the bureaucracy is still not fully aligned with the government's focus on external defense.

"I do not know if they are aligned," Alunan said. "There are a lot of misalignments. As you know, the bureaucracy needs to be reinvented. And for the way it is, expect more dysfunctions."

"We really need to focus our attention on civil defense, as so far, we have just been addressing natural disasters. But there's a war coming. Preparing for your survival is essential to civil defense, namely, updating medical stockpiles, food, water, and medicines."

The Philippines, he said, is not yet ready to fight a war against China. "It takes time to put yourself in a position of readiness. But we have squandered a lot of time as since 2012, we should have been methodical in building up our military preparedness."

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has said that his administration is continuing to upgrade the equipment and training of the Philippine military, especially the Philippine Coast Guard, which is on the frontlines of the dispute with China in the West Philippine Sea.