A Malaysian phone repairman working in Singapore has been sentenced to six months in jail after he was found guilty of transferring explicit and intimate images from customers’ mobile phones to his own device. The case has sparked serious concerns over data privacy and the conduct of mobile repair personnel.
Low Jwen Sern, 27, who worked at Fangli Trading, a mobile phone repair shop located in Clementi West, had been secretly accessing the private galleries and chats of phones entrusted to him for repairs. The offences, which occurred between 2022 and 2024, only came to light after a sharp-eyed customer noticed a prompt that exposed the unauthorised image transfers.
According to court documents, Low would search for revealing or sexually explicit content, particularly of women, and transfer them using Apple’s AirDrop feature, which leaves no record of the file transfer. In the case of Android devices, he used Bluetooth followed by WhatsApp to forward the media to his personal iPhone.
Caught by a Forwarding Notification
Low’s actions were discovered when a man left his Android phone at the shop for repairs in September 2024. Upon returning the phone, the man noticed a suspicious prompt showing that some images had been forwarded from his device. He soon found that intimate photos of his wife – including nude images and photos of her in lingerie with her face visible – had been accessed and sent without consent.
Outraged, the couple lodged a police report. Investigations uncovered that Low had saved at least 71 explicit images and eight videos taken from five different customers. The court also heard that he had likely accessed more, but had already deleted them and could not recall the specifics.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Jeremy Bin highlighted the calculated nature of Low’s behaviour, noting how he deliberately exploited the AirDrop feature on iPhones to avoid leaving a trace. The court also heard that this behaviour was “for his own sexual pleasure” and continued over several years undetected.
Industry-Wide Privacy Concerns
In pushing for a sentence of six to seven months, the prosecution referenced a CNA investigative report which found that nearly one in three phone repair shops had accessed customer data without permission. Mr Bin emphasised the growing threat posed by such incidents, particularly as smartphones become more affordable and widely used.
He noted that such violations are difficult to detect and even harder to prosecute unless victims are alert and proactive, as in this case. The incident highlights a wider problem in the mobile repair industry and raises urgent questions about consumer protection, especially when entrusting devices containing sensitive information to strangers.
Privacy Breach Could Have Been Punished More Harshly
Although Low was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment, the law allows for up to two years’ jail, a fine, or both, for possession of intimate images without consent. The relatively light sentence reflects the absence of distribution or commercial intent but does not diminish the serious breach of trust and privacy involved.
This case serves as a stern reminder for both customers and service providers. Customers are encouraged to back up and erase sensitive content before handing over their phones, while repair shops are urged to implement stricter internal controls and privacy policies.
For Singaporeans who value digital privacy and trust in service providers, this incident is a wake-up call — even everyday errands like getting a phone fixed can pose unexpected risks.