Personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Department of National Defense (DND) are banned from using artificial intelligence (AI) image generator apps often offered on social media as they can pose security risks, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. said in a recent memorandum order.
Meanwhile, the military is considering recruiting “cyber warriors” to defend its online networks from cyberattacks and is planning to upgrade its Cyber Security Group into a Cyber Security Command, according to AFP Chief General Romeo Brawner Jr.
Brawner also admitted that “old files” of the military leaked from a hacking incident in 2021 are still circulating on the dark web.
Teodoro said in a memo released Oct. 14: “The online trending digital application that uses Artificial Intelligence, which requires its users to submit at least ten photos of themselves to generate an enhanced portrait, poses significant privacy and security risks.”
He explained that AI image generators can be used to create fake profiles that can lead to identity theft, social engineering phishing attacks, and other malicious activities.
“All DND and AFP personnel are directed to refrain from using Al photo generator applications, and practice vigilance in sharing information online,” Teodoro said.
He also reminded AFP and DND personnel to “ensure that your actions are aligned to the Department’s values and are in adherence to existing policies.”
For the hiring of cyber warriors, Brawner told the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) forum on Thursday that there is a need to “relax” the recruitment process.
“This time, we will recruit cyber warriors – We will be looking for talented, skilled individuals.. They might not be competent to pass the regular recruitment procedures and requirements, so we are relaxing them (requirements) a bit just like in other countries.” He said.
Citing his interactions with his counterparts in other countries, the AFP chief also said there seems to be a similar trend in other military organizations.
“There is that general realization that these new breed of warriors do not necessarily have to be muscled, strong. What we need are individuals who are intelligent, very skillful in the cyber domain,” Brawner said.
Meanwhile, turning the AFP’s Cyber Security Group into Cyber Security Command would mean additional capabilities, personnel, and equipment, the general said.
“With the increased threats that we are facing and the importance of the cyber domain as a new domain in warfare, we thought of coming up with these changes like the development of the Cyber Command,” he said.
The military chief said the plan is still being studied and will need President Marcos’ approval “because we are going to change some of the organizations within the Armed Forces.”
Brawner also said that they expect to finish the study within the year.
The AFP’s cyber system was last successfully hacked two years ago, according to Brawner and he also said that there have been “many attempts” to hack their system again since then by the cyber hackers.
“We experience this almost every day,” he said “They’re trying to penetrate our networks, but we are happy to note that so far, they are not successful.”
“We believe that some of the attacks are foreign, some of them are local,” Brawner said.