- Joined
- Jul 25, 2008
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OK for stores to record IC data?
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LAST Saturday's report ("Look younger than 40? Show IC to buy alcohol, cigs") said 7-Eleven counter staff can ask customers who look younger than 40 to produce their identity cards before being allowed to buy cigarettes or alcohol. The staff would then record the customers' birth dates in the computer system.
Under the National Registration Act, it is an offence for "any person who, without lawful authority, parts with possession of any identity card to any person".
Does 7-Eleven have the right to record the birth dates of customers in its computer system? Does it possess "lawful authority" to demand ICs from customers? Does its practice contravene the Personal Data Protection Act, which will kick in next year?
How are we to ensure that our data is not sold to telemarketers? And are the computer servers of Dairy Farm Singapore, which owns the 7-Eleven stores, protected against hacking attacks?
The whole exercise sounds extreme. People are already being bombarded with demands to produce their ICs for security, registration and cross-checking purposes. In some commercial buildings, you have to surrender your IC in order to enter the offices. None of these is mandatory by law.
Retailers should not be too liberal with their requests for IC data. If 7-Eleven is serious about backing the Government's fight against teen smoking and drinking, it should stop the sale of alcohol and cigarettes in its stores. Otherwise, it should go back to only checking their customers' ICs to verify their ages.
Information on a person's IC is confidential.
Francis Cheng
[h=2][/h]
LAST Saturday's report ("Look younger than 40? Show IC to buy alcohol, cigs") said 7-Eleven counter staff can ask customers who look younger than 40 to produce their identity cards before being allowed to buy cigarettes or alcohol. The staff would then record the customers' birth dates in the computer system.
Under the National Registration Act, it is an offence for "any person who, without lawful authority, parts with possession of any identity card to any person".
Does 7-Eleven have the right to record the birth dates of customers in its computer system? Does it possess "lawful authority" to demand ICs from customers? Does its practice contravene the Personal Data Protection Act, which will kick in next year?
How are we to ensure that our data is not sold to telemarketers? And are the computer servers of Dairy Farm Singapore, which owns the 7-Eleven stores, protected against hacking attacks?
The whole exercise sounds extreme. People are already being bombarded with demands to produce their ICs for security, registration and cross-checking purposes. In some commercial buildings, you have to surrender your IC in order to enter the offices. None of these is mandatory by law.
Retailers should not be too liberal with their requests for IC data. If 7-Eleven is serious about backing the Government's fight against teen smoking and drinking, it should stop the sale of alcohol and cigarettes in its stores. Otherwise, it should go back to only checking their customers' ICs to verify their ages.
Information on a person's IC is confidential.
Francis Cheng
With such a valuable thing I'm surprise that we are suppose to surrender it on request.
