The Department of Science and Technology's (DoST) flagship Geospatial Analytics & Technology Solutions (GATES) program is strengthening cybersecurity and data protection measures as it works with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to build a unified national geospatial and climate data platform.

The three-year GATES program seeks to integrate fragmented geospatial, hazard, climate, and other strategic datasets across DoST agencies to support disaster risk reduction, governance, and advanced analytics.

In an interview with the DAILY TRIBUNE on Tuesday, DoST Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. said the program incorporates cybersecurity measures to protect data from hacking attempts through monitoring and detection systems.

DoST assistant scientist and GATES program manager Mylene Jerez said data privacy remains a priority, with safeguards in place to prevent artificial intelligence systems from exposing sensitive personal information.

“These mechanisms are in place to make sure that the data is kept private,” Jerez said.

JICA DXLab head Atsushi Yamanaka said artificial intelligence can be used both as a threat and as a tool for protection, underscoring the need for strong cybersecurity frameworks.

“AI can be used in both ways, in terms of harming people and harming society. You can think about how they can use misinformation and so on, but at the same time, there is a way to protect AI or some of those different cybersecurity elements as well,” Yamanaka said.