In implementing the protection of personal information regulations, there are a few areas the Government should look at.

Many companies require job applicants to fill in the IC numbers, birth dates and addresses not only of the job applicant himself but also all his family members. The applicant also has to provide a hard copy of his IC.

Security guards in commercial or residential buildings sometimes require visitors to exchange their IC for a visitor pass.

Organisers of lucky draws or marketing activities have also been known to sell the participants' information to companies like insurance companies.

All these practices can lead to personal information being leaked. We never know if the companies or security guards will sell the information to marketing companies or, worse, borrow money with the IC details.

The Government should ensure that companies ask for detailed personal information only when the candidate is hired, and that a hard copy of the IC is not needed at job applications.

Security guards should also just write down the visitor's IC number but not keep or make a hard copy of the IC or driving licence.

It should also be made illegal for organisers of public lucky draws or similar events to sell personal information to companies. Ng Sung Nang