MANILA – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) stated on Wednesday that it has disabled its online passport tracker following the discovery of a “data privacy concern” with the platform.
The agency claimed that it had deactivated the tracker and all of its data sources “in order to prevent further data broadcasting”.
The DFA is conducting an investigation and taking necessary action “to secure the data that may have been exposed”. Apart from that, an internal audit is being conducted to ensure that similar incidents do not occur in the future.
The agency stated that the issue was brought to the attention of its Consular Affairs Office on November 9.
“DFA-OCA (Office of Consular Affairs) assures the public that it continues to prioritize the protection and privacy of the data it handles in accordance with the Data Privacy Act of 2021 and is working with the National Privacy Commission in resolving this issue,” it said.
The DFA’s passport tracker, which was inaugurated on September 11, allows applicants to check the status of their application online.
The agency has not provided particular information about the incident or the number of applications whose data was exposed.
In the meantime, it has asked its clients to contact the following information to inquire about the status of their passport applications:
Email addresses: passportconcerns@dfa.gov.ph, oca@dfa.gov.ph
Hotlines: 09773533942, 09619432021, 09560526290 or (02) 8651-9400.
