MAN STOPPED BY 2 POLICEMEN IN M’SIA, WENT THROUGH HIS PHONE CHATS, PHOTOS & APPS

Stopped by 2 policemen who checked phone

I was waiting for my friend in a car by the road at night when 2 officers approached me and asked for my IC, checked my car, and went through my phone (personal chats, apps, photos). I felt my privacy was violated after the event.

The reason given was they were conducting an operation for drugs, illegal gambling, and vices.

Apparently, it’s only borderline legal for them to go through someone’s phone. They need to have the person under investigation before being able to check someone’s phone.

But I have a question, what’s a way to respond to this request? How to refuse this phone check nicely?

If a person refuse, can the police inconvenience him/her, by asking to follow them to the station and make you wait for hours? In that case what can a person do? Can a citizen say no?

What they are doing is borderline misuse of power isn’t it?

Netizens’ comments

1. Basically, can do nothing la. Surrender phone, let them check, and lodge complaint afterwards which we know what that means in Malaysia – nothing gets done.
2. I remember when my friends and I are in grab taxi going home (3 am) a police man in motorcycle stop us and they want to check each person on the car, I’m sitting in the passenger seat and the police is speaking in Malay so we don’t understand. Good thing the grab driver is very nice he noticed that I am kinda confuse so he answered the police in English for us to understand. My sleepy soul woke up and shift to 350 degrees. Damn! Still remember how the police knock on the window of the car.
3. Theoretically, they were random checking your phone and that isn’t allowable, unless u are under investigation for a suspected crime. But this is Malaysia.
4. Foreigner here, whom such thing happened various times. At some point, I would just tell them that it’s completely fine, but that I would like this check to happen in the police station with the presence of someone from my embassy. They would usually freak out and let it be (I don’t even have an actual embassy in Malaysia, lol).