By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, June 10: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has given its assurance that no personal information is collected or disclosed under the Mobile Phone Data (MPD) collection initiative.
In a TVS news report, MCMC deputy chief executive officer Datuk Zulkarnain Mohd Yasin said all data received from telecommunications service providers is fully anonymised before being submitted to the commission.
“In the official letters issued to service providers, we clearly stated that all data must be anonymised.
“There is no identifying information such as names, identity card numbers, addresses, or any other details that could be used to identify account holders,” he told reporters after a media briefing on the MPD initiative in Cyberjaya today.
Zulkarnain further clarified that the location data collected does not represent the location of individuals but refers instead to the location of transmission towers where communications take place.
He also pointed out that once anonymised, the data is no longer classified as personal information under the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) 2010.
At the same time, he stressed that MPD is not only used for digital transformation and data analytics, but also plays a vital role in shaping more targeted and inclusive public policies.
“MPD enables more detailed and systematic planning. It provides accurate insights that help ensure no community or area is left behind in the implementation of government initiatives,” he added.
His comments come in the wake of recent reports claiming the government had requested detailed records of phone calls and internet usage from telecommunications companies.
According to a report by the South China Morning Post on Friday (June 6), MCMC had requested detailed call and internet logs for the first quarter of this year. Failure to comply, it noted, would constitute an offence under the Communications and Multimedia Act, punishable by a fine of up to RM20,000 or six months’ imprisonment.
In response, MCMC has earlier clarified that the mobile phone data collected is strictly used to generate official statistics in support of evidence-based policymaking in two key areas: the ICT sector and the tourism industry.
For the ICT sector, the data helps produce detailed statistics on mobile broadband usage and penetration across different administrative levels. In the tourism sector, it is used to track visitor numbers and domestic travel trends.
The commission also highlighted that it has engaged extensively with all mobile network operators (MNOs) over the past two years to ensure a shared understanding of data requirements, processes, and privacy safeguards.
“This initiative is in line with international best practices. Similar anonymised telecommunications data projects have been successfully implemented in countries such as Indonesia and Brazil, aimed at enhancing national statistics while fully protecting user privacy,” MCMC said. — DayakDaily
