We will continue our insights from day two of “Exploring Cybersecurity and the AI Revolution Beyond Algorithms.” This is a two-day webinar hosted by the Institute of the Corporate Director Technology Governance Committee.
Dr. Erica Phillegara, Managing Director and Chief AI and Chief Data Director of the AI Research and Education Centre, emphasized that the board must understand the technology it is trying to govern. “You can't control things you don't understand,” she said, noting that fairness and explainability lie at the heart of ethical AI. She provided an impressive example: If a model is punished by the people of Leyte for the history of the typhoon, it effectively punishes them twice. She also noted the important need for human surveillance. After surveying over 150 compliance personnel about who should be responsible if AI fails, 40% refer to the algorithm. “It tells us there's more to do,” she said.
Data privacy at Carmelo Alcala, who leads MIS, compliance, risk and audits, and Visaya Knowledge Process Outsourcing Corp. highlighted the hidden risks of using third-party Genai. “The vendor may be using ChatGpt to summarise the board deck,” he warned. “It's your own data you no longer have control over.” To address this, his team established clear boundaries. If it's not Office365 Copilot, it's blocked, regardless of whether it's being used by an employee or a vendor. He added that cybergovernance cannot be silenced any more. “Your cyber stance is just as strong as your weakest endpoint. It could be a partner's internship using the Genai plugin.”
Manuel Joey Regala, president and CEO of Cyberviser Inc., said their organization has created a formal Model Governance Committee and that all AI deployments require review. “You want to empower innovation,” he said. His company deployed forced Genai literacy training across banks, as in his words, “an organization-wide AI literacy cannot be negotiated.” There are no exceptions.
Romeo Fernando Aquino Jr., chairman of ICD's Technology Governance Committee, challenged the committee to define the value of AI in business terms. “If the answer is, 'I'll make things faster', that's not enough. Quantify it. “He encouraged companies to invite independent directors with technical backgrounds to decipher complex debates. “AI is not just a matter of CIOs,” he emphasized. “Cybersecurity is not just an IT issue. These are strategic committee issues.”
At this point it helps you look back to move forward.
A quarter century ago, meeting rooms were just beginning to face the risks of the internet and the occasional fraudulent floppy disks. Needless to say, Y2K, there were fewer “days” and “did you try again?” Cybersecurity often meant installing antivirus software once a year. AI belonged not in the strategic conferences, but in the realm of science fiction and Hollywood.
Still, the core dilemma remains. How does the board exercise monitoring if you don't fully understand the technology? How do you balance the balance between speed, safety, innovation and accountability?
The changes were speed and stakes. AI is no longer just a departmental level experiment. It is a strategic lever that spans the entire conglomerate. Cyber risks no longer exist within IT closets. Sitting straight on the board agenda. Technology may be new, but governance challenges have simply evolved.
My takeaway is this: we need to go back to basics. That means designing a governance framework with clear objectives and well-defined guardrails. You need to build practical knowledge about technology at the board level. You don't need to code, but you need to ask the right questions. We must trust our teams and make governance a guide rather than a bottleneck. Feedback should be timely, constructive and coordinated. Above all, our decisions must focus on human influence.
Ultimately, AI and all other technologies are just tools. Governance exists to ensure that those tools serve people.
I've seen this before – desktop, the internet, even email (remember that “all replies” was a revolution?). AI doesn't erase fundamentals – it expands them.
