The University Data Protection Office (UDPO) is a unit under the Office of the President responsible for ensuring the compliance by Ateneo de Manila University—including its various offices and personnel—with Republic Act No. 10173, also known as the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (DPA), its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), and other applicable privacy and data protection laws and policies, including issuances by the National Privacy Commission (NPC).

What We Do

We develop and implement policies and procedures designed to protect all personal data under the control or custody of the University after going through the institution’s standard approval process. In line with this, we perform the following specific functions:

• Monitor the University’s compliance with all applicable data protection laws and policies;
• Give advice to the University’s various units, centers, offices, and personnel regarding complaints and/or the exercise by data subjects of their rights under the DPA;
• Conduct Privacy Impact Assessments relative to activities, measures, projects, programs, or systems of the University and its different units, centers, and offices;
• Ensure proper management of security incidents including data breaches, that involve personal data under the control or custody of the University. We also prepare and submit to the NPC any or all required reports and documentation;
• Inform and cultivate awareness on privacy and data protection in the University;
• Serve as the contact person of the University vis-a-vis data subjects, the NPC, and other concerned parties, in all matters concerning privacy and data protection;
• Cooperate and coordinate with the NPC and other government agencies regarding matters concerning privacy and data protection.

Our Team

Jam Jacob
Director

Jam is a recognised authority in data protection. An IAPP Fellow of Information Privacy (CIPP/E, CIPM, FIP), and a Certified Senior Lead Implementer of ISO 27701, he has more than 12 years of experience in the field and 15 years of practicing law. Outside of the University, he is Policy and Legal Advisor to the Foundation for Media Alternatives, a civil society organisation advocating for human rights online. He is also a data protection consultant, primarily as head of the advisory and research firm, the LIGHTS Institute. Jam has been actively involved in the crafting of many data protection policies in the Philippines, such as the implementing rules of the Data Privacy Act of 2012. Today, he continues to work with global leaders in privacy rights advocacy, such as Privacy International, Association for Progressive Communications, and the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab. He also sits as a member of the Data Privacy Council for the Education Sector. He is a regular resource person at various forums and to news organisations, both domestic and foreign. He has degrees in Sociology and Law from the University of the Philippines. He also obtained a postgraduate degree (with First Class Honours) in Human Rights Law from the University of Auckland, as a 2014 New Zealand ASEAN Scholar Awards recipient. He has also taken up the Summer Course on US-EU Privacy Law and Policy at the University of Amsterdam.

Shari Datu Tambuyung
Assistant Director

Shari is a Certified Information Privacy Manager, a Certified ISO 27701 (Privacy Information Management Systems) Lead Implementer, a Certified ISO 27001 (Information Security Management System) Lead Implementer, and a former fellow of the Asia Pacific School on Internet Governance. Prior to her current role, she worked as a former Development Management Officer of the National Privacy Commission, serving under its Policy Development Division, and as overall sectoral champion for the retail industry.

She has organized and conducted orientation sessions relating to privacy and data protection. At the same time, she has attended various activities taking up human rights issues, with many focusing on privacy rights and other civil liberties.

Shari completed her undergraduate studies at Miriam College, where she earned a degree in Business Administration.

John Rey Bermeo
Compliance Officer for Privacy

With a diverse background in the education and BPO industries, John began his data privacy journey as a data privacy analyst for an aviation data analytics company. Outside his privacy-focused work, he also has extensive experience in other corporate assignments, including data analysis, content editing, quality auditing, and training facilitation. He has also been involved in different project initiatives related to quality assessment and automation. John graduated from the University of the Philippines in the Visayas with a Bachelor of Science in Fisheries (major in Marine Fisheries) and a Diploma in Teaching from the Iloilo Science and Technology University. He is a Certified Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt and Certified Orange Belt in Automation Fundamentals.