KUALA LUMPUR: The National Security Council (NSC) has called on civil servants and Malaysians to switch from navigation application Waze to locally developed alternatives, saying security risks involving Israel cannot be compromised.
The call follows Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's directive for civil servants to stop using Waze and his appeal for the public to do the same, citing concerns that sensitive government information and personal data could be exploited by Israel.
The NSC said the government took seriously the collection of users' location data, movement patterns, travel information and device details by Waze.
"The government takes seriously the collection of users' location data, movement patterns, travel information and device details by navigation application Waze, particularly as its Terms of Use provide for the application of Israeli law and the jurisdiction of Israeli regime courts in disputes relating to the use of its services.
"There can be no compromise on any security risks involving Israel. The protection of Malaysians' data and the sovereignty of the country's information must always be prioritised, including when assessing the implications of using applications subject to foreign laws and jurisdictions," it said in a statement.
The council called on civil servants and the public to use local navigation applications such as TuJu, developed by the Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA), or other suitable locally developed alternatives.
The National Cyber Security Agency (Nacsa) and the NSC have also prepared a frequently asked questions document on the matter, available at https://www.nacsa.gov.my/faq-waze.php.
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