The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) condemns the online attacks in the form of identity theft and mass cloning and hijacking of private data of social media accounts primarily directed against UP Cebu students, as well as activists and other critics of the Duterte regime and opponents of the Anti-Terror Bill.

As some have suggested, it is highly likely that these cloned accounts will be used to “plant online evidence” to be used against critics of the Anti-Terror Bill. It also is a form of online harassment against people who are actively criticizing the Duterte regime’s incompetence, corruption and repression. The fascist message is clear: “We are watching you.”

The creation of several hundred fake accounts can only be the handiwork of the NTF-ELCAC and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)’s cyber unit. The NTF-ELCAC and the AFP have long been waging a campaign of red-baiting and vilification against activists using trolls and an army of online mercenaries.

The AFP’s cyber unit was assembled around two years ago which was initially funded and directly trained by the US embassy in the name of “anti-terrorism.” Just a few days before the cyberattacks, the Philippine Army mounted a recruitment campaign for computer programmers and network specialists. The Army promised to pay their recruits at least ₱35,000 per month.

The Filipino people must demand the NTF-ELCAC to reveal how much of the people’s money is being spent by the Duterte government in “cyber anti-terrorism” whose funds are likely being used to bankroll the cyber terror attacks of the past days.

This dirty tactic is a preview of how the Anti-Terror Bill is set to be abused by the fascists against the people’s civil and political rights.

In addition to attacks on social media yesterday, the Duterte regime’s fascist cybertroops have also been busy mounting an attack against the Philippine Revolution Web Central (PRWC), the Party’s website at cpp.ph.

The persistent attack against the PRWC started around two weeks ago at a time that the Party was actively exposing the failures of the Duterte regime’s Covid-19 response and calling on the people to demand mass testing and other health and socio-economic measures, as well as an end to the militarist lockdown. So far, the PRWC’s firewall has staved off these attacks.