It has taken the government some two decades to finally come out with Personal Data Protection Bill which was presented in Parliament for first reading yesterday.

It is however not available online, which is a sad reflection on the government’s seriousness and commitment to ICT and e-government.

As a national service, the Personal Data Protection Bill is hereby put on-line and all public views and input are welcome before parliamentary debate next month.

In Parliament in April 1997, I spoke of eight principles which should be adopted in a Malaysian Data Protection Act, viz:

• The information to be contained in personal data shall be obtained and processed fairly and lawfully.

• Personal data shall be held only for specified and lawful purposes.

• Personal data held for any purpose shall not be used or disclosed in any manner incompatible with that purpose.

• Personal data held for any purpose shall be adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to that purpose.

• Personal data shall be accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date.

• Personal data held for any purpose shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose.

• An individual shall be entitled to be informed by any data user whether he holds personal data of which that individual is the subject and to access any such data; and where appropriate, to have such data corrected or erased.

• Appropriate security measures shall be taken against unauthorised access to, or alteration, disclosure or destruction of, personal data and against accidental loss or destruction of personal data.

Download Personal Data Protection Bill :-

• from server in Malaysia; or

• from server in US