PROTECTION AGAINST INTRUSIONS OF ELECTRONIC, TELEPHONE AND COMPUTER COMMUNICATIONS

Mr R. Ravindran asked the Minister for Communications whether he will consider introducing legislation to protect individual privacy from any intrusion by third parties in all forms of electronic, telephone and computer communications.

Mr Mah Bow Tan: Our existing laws protect against unauthorised intrusion into certain aspects of electronic, telephone and computer communications. For example, computer "hacking" is an offence under section 6 of the Computer Misuse Act. In addition, tampering with the installation or plant of a telecommunication system licensee for the purpose of intercepting messages is an offence under section 77 of the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore Act. The presence of such legislation serves as a deterrent to potential offenders.

For the electronic marketplace, the National Computer Board has formed an inter-agency team to study the issue of protection of personal information. The team is expected to make recommendations to the Government by year-end. In addition, the Legal Sub-committee of the National Internet Advisory Council has also drafted a Code of Practice for the Protection of Personal Information and Communications of Internet Users to safeguard the privacy of Internet users. The Code of Practice is meant to be adopted by the industry as a means of self-regulation.