PERTH, Australia — The Philippines and Australia are preparing to launch a cyber program that will boost the Southeast Asian nation’s defenses against cyberattacks and online threats, an official familiar with the discussion said.

Manila and Canberra are eyeing a “cyber boot program” which will  “impart technical skills on how to gear up for cyber attacks,” said Prof. Helge Janicke, research director of Australia’s Cyber Security Cooperative Research Centre told reporters here.

“We are looking at awareness programs, war gaming exercises,” he said.

“It is mainly about organizations and companies understanding better what these threats are and how to respond appropriately,” he said.

The program is being conceptualized after the Philippines and Australia signed a memorandum of understanding on Cyber and Critical Technology Cooperation in February.

Under the agreement, the two countries will share information and strategies on managing the cyberspace. The deal also guarantees that Manila and Canberra cooperate in addressing cyber issues and which may pose risks to national security.

Australia has been beefing up its cybersecurity program and has been pushing to provide better online protection for small and medium businesses, which make up about a third of the country’s gross domestic product, Janicke said.

“We are generating too much data from too many devices compared to years ago. In that progression, we forget that there is a risk for all of us,” he said.

“We are more accepting of risks because of the potentials. The problem is we do not understand the risks yet,” he said.

The Philippines ranked 53rd in the 2024 United Nations Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) released in April, 7 notches higher than its 61st-place finish in 2020.

In April 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order No. 58 mandating all government agencies to “formulate, adopt and implement their cybersecurity plans and strategies” to strengthen the “security and resilience of the Philippine cyberspace.”