M’sians Are Receiving Random Whatsapp Messages Telling Them Who To Vote For

By Syakir Roslan  •  in News
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source: Asian News Today

With Malaysia’s 15th General Election (GE15) fast approaching, parties are duking it out on the streets through flag wars, rallies and also some pretty questionable ways too allegedly.

Several Malaysians took to Twitter yesterday to point out how they’ve been receiving random Whatsapp messages encouraging them to vote for particular candidates and/or parties.

Twitter user @anamarysha shared the tweet above questioning whether it was normal for citizens to receive Whatsapp messages from random numbers urging her to vote for a specific party.

She was clearly distraught at the fact that her information was being passed around and used by political entities without her consent. Surprisingly (or not) enough, she wasn’t the only person to receive such a message.

As seen pictured above, several other Twitter users also faced a similar experience of receiving text messages of the same context from various candidates belonging to different political parties.

One Twitter user probed his caller, an alleged PN rep, to ask where they got his number from, to which the rep responded that the information was obtained from the EC.

That being said, it’s important to point out that all political parties have access to the voter details. Each party receives copies of the electoral roll, giving them details of:

  • voters’ names
  • identification number
  • address
  • the location of where they’re voting in
source: Twitter

This lines up with many Malaysian Twitter users’ relating their experiences of receiving a piece of paper in their mail with their personal information displayed.

The main issue is how Malaysians are receiving these messages through their Whatsapp and text messages because mobile numbers are not supposed to be part of the details kept in the electoral roll.

If you check for your voter details on the SPR website, only the aforementioned information should pop up.

source: Bernama

Understandably, many are now concerned about crucial personal information like their identification number being exposed to the public. This might also suggest some form of data breach going on although nothing has been confirmed nor addressed regarding said issue.

Prior to the introduction of automatic registration for Malaysian voters, Malaysians who previously filled up voter registration forms might be able to attest to the fact that they were also asked for contact numbers.

With that in mind, one could assume that the EC might have kept said contact numbers as part of the electoral roll data going to political parties.

If you haven’t already, check your voter status here today!

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