GoreBox agrees to PH ban following due process – DICT

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) on Wednesday clarified that the removal of the online game Gorebox from the Philippines was a mutual decision reached after due process, not a unilateral government action.

In a radio interview, DICT Secretary Henry Aguda said the agency reached out to the platform's developers, issued a notice, and asked what measures they would take to prevent the harmful effects of the game.

"Nag-reach out kami sa kanila. Binigyan namin ng due process, binigyan namin ng notice, binigyan namin ng confidential na nakakasakit ang platform (We reached out to them. We gave them due process, we gave them notice, and we told them confidentially that the platform is harmful)," Aguda said.

The DICT asked the developers what they would do to address the platform's harmful effects.

"Kaya hindi sila makapag-respond, kaya sila mismo voluntarily sabi, 'Pwede niyo na kaming tanggalin, pwede niyo na kaming i-block.' So mutually agreed yan – hindi po yan unilateral (They could not respond, so they voluntarily said, 'You can remove us, you can block us.' So, it was mutually agreed – it was not unilateral)," he added.

Aguda said the platform developers themselves suggested the blocking after failing to respond to the agency's concerns.

"Para wala nang hard feelings (So there are no hard feelings)," he said.

Meanwhile, Aguda said the DICT is set to meet with executives of gaming platform Roblox in Singapore on Thursday to demand compliance with two remaining safety requirements.

He said Roblox has already fulfilled three of the five demands previously made by the DICT – the default parental controls, chat monitoring for violent tendencies, and game classification for kids, teenagers, and adults.

The two remaining requirements are the integration of the National ID system for foolproof identity verification and the establishment of a physical office in the Philippines.

Aguda said Roblox's deadline to complete all five requirements is no later than October.

Joining Aguda in the Singapore meeting were National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag, representatives of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, and some lawmakers.

Aguda said the delegation will seek additional evidence to assist law enforcement in ongoing investigations.

He added that if Roblox fails to comply and the meeting does not go well, the government will make the necessary recommendation.

-Raymond Carl Dela Cruz/Philippine News Agency