KUALA LUMPUR: Police inspections of the cellphone of an individual will be carried out only if there is reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing by the person involved.
Federal police CID director Commissioner Datuk Huzir Mohamed said today that police have the powers to conduct an inspection on a person’s cellphone but only when there is a crucial need to do so for security reasons or with reasonable suspicion.
“When we are investigating a case, we might seize the cellphone of the individual to help in the probe. For instance, in a kidnapping case, if we suspect the medium of communication used by the abductor is a cellphone or in a case of terrorism where we learn that the subject is using a cellphone at a location, we can seize it to help in out investigations,” he said.
He said when a police officer seizes one’s cellphone or any other item, he or she is required to file an official report on the matter stating it was done as part of an investigation and not for personal reasons.
“If anyone finds their cellphone had been inspected or seized without reason, please lodge a police report or report to the police Integrity and Standard Compliance department. To date, the CID has never received any such complaint from the public,” he added.
On Monday, Deputy Home Minister Mohd Azis Jamman had said that to maintain public order and national security, police have the authority to inspect the cellphones of any individual for obscene or offensive content, or content that might threaten public peace.
