SIBU: Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing questioned the security of personal data and information collected by the MySejahtera application.
In a statement yesterday, he said, earlier Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar had repeatedly assured that personal data and information collected by the application would be protected and only used for the purpose of COVID-19 pandemic detection and mitigation.
“Just like the public, I am still very sceptical about this guarantee.
“Where is the clause that guarantees this promise? From the very beginning, the minister could not state clearly who held the rights of MySejahtera since it was developed.
“Who is the owner of MySJ Sdn Bhd? What is the story about all the relationships and transactions behind MySJ?,” asked Tiong who is also the president of the Democratic Progressive Party (PDP) and Dudong assemblyman.
In a recent interview, he told the media that Khairy could not continue to evade public questions on the issue of the security of MySJ’s personal data
“He must clearly explain the intricacies of the application, especially the part regarding personal data nationwide as it was found that the ownership does not belong to the government.
“That it could actually be the property of certain companies that own intellectual property rights and other related information. If this is true, then this information is related to national security,” he stated.
“I agree with UMNO deputy president Datuk Seri Utama Mohamad Hasan’s comment that if MySejahtera is owned by MySJ Sdn Bhd, then it does not belong to the government at all.
“Developers and app owners are more likely to monitor every user movement and also use their personal information for personal gain.
“There will be no privacy at all and even worse, there is a risk of our personal information being exposed.”
Tiong said that Khairy needed to immediately allay these doubts with conviction.
“Initially the MySejahtera application and launch of the vaccine were under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation. But after Khairy took over the Health portfolio, all these were combined into one ministry,” he said.
He appealed to the government to discuss the matter in depth in the Cabinet and not take the matter lightly.
“If Khairy still cannot or will not clearly answer these questions, he should resign and apologise to the people,” he said.
“Now that the country has entered a phase of transition to endemic and with the borders reopened, is the use of the MySejahtera app still acceptable to the people?
“Therefore, I urge the government to stop the use of MySejahtera to prevent further intrusion into the private lives of the people.
“Perhaps, it is time now to use simpler mechanisms to prevent accidental leaks and misuse of personal data,” said Tiong.
