KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 9 — Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob has announced that the use of the MySejahtera app is now mandatory in those areas with high-speed internet access starting from today.

The National Security Council (NSC) has agreed to make registration via the app mandatory to boost contact tracing efforts should any positive Covid-19 cases be linked to a particular premises.

"Sometimes, a customer does not write their name and phone number correctly. This makes contact tracing difficult in the event of a positive Covid-19 case at the premises involved,” he said during a press briefing today.

Ismail Sabri added that areas without internet connection, especially in rural areas, are exempted from this mandatory requirement.

On November 19 last year, Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah reassured Malaysians that they need not fear recording their personal details with the MySejahtera app as the data would not be misused.

Dr Noor Hisham added that the app’s security features meet international standards and its data is owned by the ministry.

He said that the application was launched by the government in April last year to assist the Health Ministry with Covid-19 data management amid the pandemic.