Presidential Communications Office website down during SONA

MANILA, Philippines — The website of the Presidential Communications Office went offline on Monday as the State of the Nation Address was ongoing.

After loading a browser screening page to ward off bots, the office’s website, pco.gov.ph, is directed to a host error page that reads “Gateway time-out.”

This was after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. tasked the government to craft and implement a national cybersecurity plan in his report before a joint session of Congress.

“IT infra requires stronger and more impervious cyber defense. Our national cybersecurity plan lays down the plan to safeguard our systems against cyberattacks,” Marcos said.

“With this said, I have directed the agencies concerned to ensure that the speed and quality of our IT development always mirrors the pace and trajectory of our economic aspirations,” he added.

The PCO website usually releases official photos of the SONA during and after it is delivered. No official statement has been released yet on the downtime.

The PCO is the lead communications arm of the government and primary source of messaging. Its office is based at the Malacañan Palace complex.

Not mentioned in Marcos’ pronouncements on cybersecurity were recent attacks on digital government services, such as the hacking of the portal of disaster risk reduction units earlier this month and the knocking out of the Department of Migrant Workers’ system.