“Artificial intelligence may be transforming tools, but without human judgment and cyber competence, no system is secure”
The recently concluded 4th Poland–Philippines IT Business Summit brought together leaders from government, enterprise, and the tech sector under a timely and urgent theme: “Cybersec and Beyond.”
With threats escalating and digital technologies outpacing regulation, the summit served as both a wake-up call and a roadmap for how the Philippines must move forward in the digital age—not just faster, but smarter and more securely.
Opening messages from Mr. Adam Dyszlewski, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of tof Poland, Mr. Bartek Wasiewski of the Polish Investment and Trade Agency Manila, Mr. Maciek Kurjanski of the Polish Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines, and Ms. Gladys De Ocampo, Deputy Division Chief of the Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Section of the Cybersecurity Bureau, Department of Information and Communications Technology, set the tone by emphasizing mutual interests in cybersecurity, digital cooperation, and building resilient economies through strategic tech alliances. Each speaker underscored the urgency of moving beyond surface-level partnerships to forge enduring digital frameworks grounded in trust and shared responsibility.
De Ocampo’s keynote presentation laid out the Philippine government’s ongoing digital security agenda: the National Cybersecurity Plan 2023–2028, the E-Governance Act, and the Free Wi-Fi for All Program.
While acknowledging the Philippines’ advancement to Tier 2 in the 2024 Global Cybersecurity Index, she was clear-eyed about the challenges ahead—especially in building local capacity, institutional coordination, and implementation readiness.
Framing digital collaboration with Poland as a form of “strategic digital diplomacy,” she called for stronger international linkages to bolster national cybersecurity, develop technical expertise, and create mechanisms for secure data governance.
This call for collaboration was echoed in the first panel, which explored how public and private actors can work together to operationalize cybersecurity “by design and by default.”
De Ocampo was joined by Jan Svorobovic, Asia-Pacific Sales Director of Comarch, and Dongie Alviar, President of Advanced Abilities Philippines.
The panelists agreed that government-led initiatives need the technical reinforcement and agility of the private sector. Svorobovic pointed to Poland’s e-invoicing rollout and regulatory compliance culture as a proof point that smart regulation can actually drive innovation.
Alviar emphasized that shared intelligence, transparency, and openness to co-development are critical to maintaining cybersecurity in a constantly shifting threat landscape.
The second panel pulled no punches in laying out the vulnerabilities in our digital infrastructure. Lorenzo Rodriguez, representing Fintech Alliance PH and RCBC, cited P5.8 billion in cyber losses reported by Philippine banks in 2024.
Only 6 percent of organizations in the country are deemed cyber-ready. AI-driven phishing, insider threats, and identity fraud are on the rise.
And yet, public awareness remains low, and the talent pipeline is woefully underdeveloped. James To, President of SwiftPay and NextBank, shared how their systems have built in compliance, resilience, and interoperability to serve not just fintechs and banks, but also regulators.
His message was clear: security must be foundational to digital innovation, not a patch added later.
The panelists also emphasized the need to “future-proof” our education system.
As digital transformation touches every aspect of work and life, foundational skills in logic, data security, and responsible tech use must be integrated into early education.
Poland’s STEM-focused academic approach and its successful alignment of industry and universities in the cybersecurity space were held up as a model for the Philippines to emulate.
Artificial intelligence may be transforming tools, but without human judgment and cyber competence, no system is secure.
The summit also put a spotlight on the capabilities of local firms. Companies like Advanced Abilities, Black Bear Securities, and SwiftPay showed that Filipino tech enterprises are more than capable of delivering world-class solutions.
These aren’t just suppliers—they are strategic assets. The government must integrate such innovators into national procurement and infrastructure initiatives to foster a secure, sovereign digital ecosystem.
The most forward-looking proposal came from PAIH Manila: the establishment of a Poland–Philippines Digital Alliance.
This envisioned joint cyber training centers, collaborative regulatory compliance hubs for ASEAN, academic exchanges, and continuous knowledge-sharing between two digitally ambitious nations.
This is no longer a theoretical exercise—it is an imperative.
“Trust is not a given—it is built, byte by byte.”
A quote from Fintech Alliance PH Chair Lito Villanueva that was echoed by Mr. Lorenzo Rodriguez in his remarks, best captured the ethos of the summit.
Trust alone won’t shield us from digital threats.
It must be matched by investment, competence, and decisive policy. If the insights shared in this summit are to mean anything, they must translate into action—starting with government and industry leaders recognizing that cybersecurity is not a peripheral concern, but a prerequisite for sustainable, inclusive prosperity in a digital economy that evolves and grows more complex by the day.
