KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has ruled out reversing the ban on Waze for civil servants, insisting that national security must not be compromised despite criticism of the decision.
He said the government had verified concerns over the navigation application's links to Israel and the legal jurisdiction governing its use before deciding to impose the restriction.
Anwar said he had instructed officials to examine the matter during a cybersecurity meeting two or three days ago.
"When I received the information, we checked it. First, its headquarters is based in Israel.
"Second, under the agreement, if you use Waze and a problem arises, Israeli law applies. There is no law from another country involved.
"That was why I took rather spontaneous action. I could not even say that we should postpone it for a day," he told reporters after attending Friday prayers at Masjid Al-Mustaqim in Taman Nirwana, Ampang.
Anwar acknowledged criticism that the government had acted hastily but maintained that the decision was necessary to protect sensitive information.
He said he was particularly concerned about the possibility of information relating to civil servants and government operations being exposed to parties operating under Israeli jurisdiction.
Asked whether action would be taken against civil servants who continued using Waze, Anwar reiterated that national security could not be compromised.
"How can civil servants compromise national security simply because some local facilities are not yet fully developed?" he said.
On Wednesday, the government announced a ban on Waze among civil servants, citing concerns over the potential misuse of government information and users' personal data by the Israeli regime.
In a statement, the Prime Minister's Office said the decision took into account Waze Mobile Ltd's status as a data controller incorporated and operating under Israeli law.
The government said the move was intended to prevent potential threats to national security and protect sensitive information.
Waze has denied allegations that it collects sensitive government information or allows third parties to exploit users' personal data.
The company described the allegations as untrue and maintained that it operates under strict privacy policies and complies with applicable data protection standards.
The issue was also raised in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday, when Bentong member of parliament Young Syefura Othman of DAP questioned the government's decision and highlighted shortcomings in the locally developed TuJu navigation application.
Responding to her supplementary question, Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo said concerns over data security and the application of Israeli law to Waze's terms of use were among the reasons for the restriction.
He clarified that the ban applied to civil servants carrying out official duties and did not extend to the general public.
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