Photo: Bernama
KUALA LUMPUR: The proposed Omnibus Bill, which deals with data sharing, is in the works, says Gobind Singh Deo.
The main principles of the draft Bill are being finalised, said the Digital Minister.
He said the draft bill would regulate data sharing among civil service agencies.
"The ministry takes note of the need for personal data protection to prevent any abuse when sharing data among agencies," he told the Dewan Rakyat during Question Time on Wednesday (July 3).
Gobind said although government agencies were not liable under the Personal Data Protection Act 2010, civil servants are still subject to the Official Secrets Act and Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations and can be charged.
"The ministry will study the feasibility of data protection provisions in the draft Bill to strike a balance between sharing of data and the rights of individuals on their personal data," he said in response to William Leong (PH-Selayang) who asked if data protection provisions would be included in the Omnibus Bill.
Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli had previously said in June last year that the tabling of the Omnibus Bill would enable government agencies to share data via the Central Database System (Padu).
He had said that the Bill was necessary as the Padu system is an integrated data-gathering system that is easier to manage compared to existing systems.
In January this year, Rafizi said the government would try to enact such a law within one year.
The proposed law is expected to allow data sharing among government agencies and the use of cloud storage.
