Malaysia is looking to improve the delivery of government services and aid to targeted subsidies through a new central database system - Pangkalan data utama (Padu).
Launched in collaboration between Malaysia's Ministry of Economy, the Department of Statistics (DOSM), and the Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and Management Planning Unit, Padu will house comprehensive information on its citizens and permanent residents that can be accessed by all government agencies.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Padu will act as a national database of socio-economic information for every household in the country, providing regular analytics with data updated in “near real-time”.
The development of Padu is intended to allow for data-driven policymaking and decision-making while enabling targeted policy implementation, he added.
The government said Padu will enable it to distribute subsidies "more effectively" through the data sourced from over 400 government agencies as well as other related organisations excluding bank information systems.
He added that the new initiative is in line with the country’s efforts to digitalise its systems and reduce costs and wastage.
The system has been in development since June 2023, and will see integration with MyDigital ID, the country's national digital identification system at a later date.
Padu covers nearly 300 types of data under the federal government. It is expected that the data from state and local governments will eventually be included.
Track income
The new database hub is also aimed by the government to get a clearer picture of the national household income.
Malaysia's economy minister Rafizi Ramli said Padu will enhance the government’s ability to accurately measure the socioeconomic status of the population, mitigating disparities linked to disposable income.
“This measurement method takes into account the number of dependents and household size, cost of living based on location, distance to workplace and ownership of assets such as homes, vehicles, and land,” he said.
He added that this approach will allow the government to focus on providing assistance based on well-defined criteria and move away from the conventional 40 percent income group (B40), middle 40 percent income group (M40) and top 20 percent income group (T20) classifications.
Rafizi said there are 39 variables yet to be updated to improve the targeting mechanism, strengthen delivery channels, and enable effective programme implementation.
“Self-updating will ensure the authenticity of information and data, thus portraying the current status of individuals in Padu,” he said.
Malaysians will have until March 31 this year to update their information on the database.
Cybersecurity concerns
The database plan has run into privacy concerns in just a few hours after the launch.
Malaysia's former deputy international trade minister Ong Kian Ming revealed that anyone with knowledge of another person’s identity card (IC) number and postcode address can register on their behalf.
“It will be a hassle to get back your account,” Ong wrote on social media platform X.
Rafizi has currently admitted to the built-in loophole in the system which may allow for identity theft. He alerted users to reach out to the help desk if they find that their account is registered by someone else.
He said such fraud registration, although possible, is only recorded in the database once the account holder completes the electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) process, which requires sending photos of the IC and a selfie of the account holder.
“Until the eKYC process is completed, the registration is pending and invalid,” Rafizi said.
