SINGAPORE, Jan 17 — The sole proprietor of a mobile phone shop has been given a record S$48,000 (RM168,494) fine for using his customers’ personal data to illicitly register prepaid SIM cards without their knowledge or consent.

Koh Wei Ming — who is also named Muhammad Amin Koh and ran the shop Mobile Chat — then sold the SIM cards to anonymous buyers.

In a statement today, the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) said investigations found that Koh’s errant practices took place over a period of four years with more than 1,000 illicit SIM cards sold.

The S$48,000 fine is "the highest penalty meted out for this offence to date”, the commission added.

Koh was previously sentenced to 16 months’ jail last September for unauthorised modification of the contents of telecommunications company M1 Limited’s computer system for the registration of prepaid SIM cards.

The PDPC said that this was the second case involving the serious misuse of individuals’ personal data for illegal activities.

The first involved mobile retailer Yoshi Mobile, that sold illicit SIM cards that were then used to send unsolicited messages.

Yoshi Mobile was handed a fine of S$21,000.

The commission said that takes a serious view on the misuse of data and will take firm enforcement action against such errant retailers.

TODAY has reached out to the PDPC for more information about Mobile Chat. — TODAY