The Department of National Defense (DND) on Wednesday denied its systems suffered a data breach.
Defense spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arsenio Andolong said in a statement that no data breach occurred and the department’s systems were not compromised.
“Contrary to a recent news report, the Department of National Defense has not monitored any data breach over the weekend, and its systems remain secure and fully functional,” Andolong said.
He also stressed that the DND — along with its bureaus, including the Armed Forces of the Philippines — “continues to implement its cybersecurity to prevent attempts by malign actors to illegally access our ICT systems and infrastructure.”
Over the weekend, a self-described hacker group, Philippines Exodus Security (PHEDS), claimed it successfully breached the Philippine Army and the Department of National Defense (DND), compromising the official accounts of 10 army officials.
The hacking group also claimed it obtained highly confidential documents from the Philippine Army and the DND, including 300 gigabytes (GB) of classified and sensitive data from the Army’s cybersecurity battalion.
PHEDS also admitted to hacking the Philippine Navy’s mailing account, citing the military’s use of “weak passwords.”
The hacking group claimed it acquired 15GB of confidential documents from the Navy’s cybersecurity site, spanning from 2020 to 2025.
It said it stole data, including highly sensitive intelligence on Navy officials and personnel, exposing over 1,000 high-value individuals.
As of the moment, the PHEDS’ official account is no longer searchable on Facebook.