KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 (Bernama) -- There are no evidence to show telecommunication companies (telco) leaked mobile phone numbers of consumers to content providers, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
However, the government has not ruled out the possibility of dealers or telelcommunication company insiders leaking consumer information to content providers, said Deputy Information Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Joseph Salang.
"Many people assumed that content providers who sent business SMS contents to phone users were obtained from telecommunications companies. But investigations by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) proved it did not happen.
"There is a possibility the telco dealers or insiders leak such information required by the content providers. I believe many numbers were harvested randomly," he said when replying to a question by Datuk Ismail Abd Muttalib (BN-Maran) during the question and answer session.
Ismail had wanted to know how the ministry controlled and supervised the promotion of business through SMS and what was the punishment if there was proof scams in such business.
Salang said MCMC was always monitoring the activities of licence holders through the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 which provides for a fine of not more than RM100,000 or jail of not more than two years or both, if convicted.
He said through the monitoring of MCMC, 185 cases of pornographic, defamation and offensive SMS dissemination were investigated under Section 233 of the act, last year.
Replying to a supplementary question by Datuk Dr Mohamad Shahrum Osman (BN-Lipis), Salang said the industry practiced self-regulation to handle customer complaints.
" This included the setting up of a billiing command centre to handle customer billiong problems and a framework to improve the billing system," he said.
Salang said Pos Malaysia Berhad was also implementing the project 'Address for all' for houses which do not have complete address.
He said there were 361,241 premises and houses which are not numbered the country, involving 138 delivery offices and 3,963 call points.
"Through this project, the houses and premises would be given comprehensive addresses to facilitate impelementation," he said in reply to a question by Datuk Wee Jeck Seng (BN-Tanjong Piai).