COMMENT | Come clean over MySejahtera's questionable dealings

COMMENT | Opposition leader and Port Dickson MP Anwar Ibrahim has raised serious concerns, citing the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) hearing on March 24 this year regarding the alleged “sale” of the MySejahtera application to a questionable private company.

It was said that this transfer of ownership has been decided by the cabinet on Nov 26, 2021, allowing the Finance Ministry to approve the Health Ministry’s appointment of MySJ Sdn Bhd (MySJ) through direct negotiation.

This raises concerns on the fate of the vast amount of personal data collected by MySejahtera and draws criticisms on poor governance standards.

The controversy surrounding MySejahtera’s questionable dealings is a symptom of poor transparency in what is clearly an issue that concerns the nation given its ubiquitous use by 38 million users, including Malaysians, non-citizens, and travellers.

Sensitive data could be at risk if there are regulatory and system loopholes, risking personal health information and other data fall into the wrong hands.

For example, MySejahtera check-in data maps an individuals’ movement and location, forming a digital image of an individual’s preferences. Data is the “digital gold”, and data brokers can sell this highly sought-after information to the highest bidder.

Data may include personal details such as name, identity and contact number, associated health information (Covid-19 cases, close contacts, health status declarations, etc.), and vaccine certificates.

Medical data is a huge part of the multi-billion-dollar...