KUALA LUMPUR – With the push for more Malaysians to register in the Central Database Hub (Padu), the government should consider drafting a law allowing the public to sue it over data leakages, a Barisan Nasional (BN) lawmaker proposed.
Datuk Seri Wee Jeck Seng (Tg Piai-BN) told the Dewan Rakyat of his proposal today when recounting views from members of the public about their fears of having their personal information leaked.
Wee said currently, Padu has only achieved a 16% registration rate, while the government wants to hit 100% by the end of March.
“We are seeing an awareness to intensify personal data protection. Countries under the European Union have the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), while nations like Australia, the United Kingdom, and India, have their own act where the government can be brought to court and charged for data leakages.
“This is important, will the government be accountable if (Malaysians) are scammed due to data leakages from Padu?
“I suggest the government form a similar act, so that it can be counted as an entity that can be brought to court and convicted if involved in data information leakages,” he said when debating the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s royal address today.
Wee said he was concerned as Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli had recently said that his ministry, which was responsible for developing Padu, and its agencies are not subject to the Personal Data Protection Act, which implied that the government would wash its hands off any data leakages.
Wee added that online scams are becoming prevalent globally.
Padu is a comprehensive government system containing profiles of individuals and households, encompassing citizens and permanent residents.
The system is intended to serve as the primary reference when disbursing government subsidies to ensure they reach targeted groups.
Recently, a hacker group called R00TK1T claimed it had stolen data from the Padu system under the National Population and Family Development Board, an agency under the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.
Rafizi then denied that the Padu central database hub was hacked, while Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said no data violations had been detected in the database following checks with CyberSecurity Malaysia.
Padu was launched on January 2 and the public have until March 31 to register their personal information on income, among others, to eventually facilitate disbursement of subsidies.
On the deadline, Wee said more time should be given as not all Malaysians are technologically savvy nor do they have access to the internet.
Citing a recent report, he said Padu had a low registration frequency in Sabah, Sarawak, and in interior areas.
“Padu’s website is not user-friendly. People must fill in 40 questions from eight sections, and the update will be marked as incomplete even if one question is missed.
“I want to remind the government, don’t let our inability to provide good internet access punish the people by causing them to be dropped from getting subsidies,” he said.
Wee also urged the government against being hasty and to consider a more relevant update period so Padu can achieve a 100% update rate. – February 29, 2024