Data complaint filed against plan to sell Telenor Myanmar

A Telenor Myanmar customer has complained to Norway's data protection authority that a planned sale of the business risks a potentially dangerous breach of privacy

BANGKOK -- A customer of Telenor's Myanmar telecommunications business has filed a complaint with Norway’s data protection authority, saying the company's plan to sell the business risks a potentially dangerous breach of privacy, the law firm representing the person said.

After the military ousted Myanmar’s elected government last year, Norway-based Telenor Group announced it would sell its business there to the M1 Group, a Lebanese-based investment firm. It also wrote off the value of the business. Final details of the sale remain unclear.

The complaint filed Monday on behalf of a Myanmar resident, whose name was withheld to protect them from reprisals, contends that such a sale could result in “the dangerous transfer of control over sensitive user data," according to a copy provided by the law firm, SANDS Advokatfirma DA.

The complaint to the Norwegian Data Protection Authority asks it to investigate and ensure the sale will not infringe on the data rights of those affected.