ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES ACT 2007

Electronic Government Activities LAWS OF MALAYSIA REPRINT Act 680 ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES ACT 2007 As at 1 November 2017 PUBLISHED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF LAW REVISION, MALAYSIA UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE REVISION OF LAWS ACT 1968 2017 1 2 Act 680 Laws of Malaysia ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES ACT 2007 Date of Royal Assent … … … 29 August 2007 Date of publication in the Gazette … … 30 August 2007 Electronic Government Activities LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 680 ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES ACT 2007 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Part I PRELIMINARY Section 1. Short title and commencement 2. Application 3. Use not mandatory 4. Reference to other written laws 5. Interpretation Part II ADMINISTRATION AND APPLICATION OF THE ACT TO WRITTEN LAW 6. Designation by relevant Minister 7. Subsidiary legislation 8. Repeal or amendment 9. Information Technology Instructions Part III LEGAL RECOGNITION OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGE 10. Legal recognition of electronic message 11. Formation and validity of contract 3 4 Laws of Malaysia Act 680 Part IV FULFILMENT OF LEGAL REQUIREMENTS BY ELECTRONIC MEANS Section 12. Writing 13. Signature 14. Seal 15. Witness 16. Original form 17. Certified true copy 18. Copy 19. Submission of a document 20. Prescribed form 21. Requirement to issue licence, permit, approval, authorization, etc. 22. Retention of document 23. Electronic register 24. Service and delivery 25. Personal service 26. Payment 27. Receipt Part V COMMUNICATION OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGE 28. Attribution of electronic message 29. Contents of electronic message 30. Each electronic message to be regarded separately 31. Time of dispatch 32. Time of receipt 33. Place of dispatch 34. Place of receipt 35. Acknowledgement of receipt Electronic Government Activities Part VI MISCELLANEOUS Section 36. Regulations Schedules 5 6 Laws of Malaysia Act 680 Electronic Government Activities 7 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 680 ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES ACT 2007 An Act to provide for legal recognition of electronic messages in dealings between the Government and the public, the use of electronic messages to fulfill legal requirements and to enable and facilitate the dealings through the use of electronic means and other matters connected therewith. [1 January 2008, P.U. (B) 456/2007] ENACTED by the Parliament of Malaysia as follows: Part I PRELIMINARY Short title and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Electronic Government Activities Act 2007. (2) This Act comes into operation on a date to be appointed by the Minister by notification in the Gazette. Application 2. Subject to section 3, this Act shall apply to Federal laws which are designated in accordance with section 6. 8 Laws of Malaysia Act 680 Use not mandatory 3. (1) Nothing in this Act shall make it mandatory for a person to use, provide or accept any electronic message in dealings with the Government unless the person consents to the using, providing or accepting of the electronic message. (2) A person’s consent to use, provide or accept any electronic message in dealings with the Government may be inferred from the person’s conduct. Reference to other written laws 4. The application of this Act shall be supplemental and without prejudice to any other written laws regulating the dealings between the Government and the public. Interpretation 5. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “designated Act” means a written law or part of it which is designated by the relevant Minister under section 6; “Information Technology Instructions” means the instructions issued under section 9; “electronic” means the technology of utilizing electrical, optical, magnetic, electromagnetic, biometric, photonic or other similar technology; “Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for leading the changes in modernizing the Malaysian public service administration; “relevant Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for the administration of the designated Act; “electronic message” means an information generated, sent, received or stored by an electronic means; “originator” means a person by whom or on whose behalf, the electronic message is generated or sent; Electronic Government Activities 9 “addressee” means a person who is intended by the originator to receive the electronic message; “information processing system” means an electronic system for generating, sending, receiving, storing or processing the electronic message; “electronic signature” means any letter, character, number, sound or any other symbol or any combination thereof created in an electronic form adopted by a person as a signature. Part II ADMINISTRATION AND APPLICATION OF THE ACT TO WRITTEN LAW Designation by relevant Minister 6. (1) The relevant Minister may, after consultation with the Minister, designate in Form 1 of the Schedule, any written law or part of it for the purpose of the application of this Act. (2) The relevant Minister, in designating any written law or part of it under subsection (1), may impose any conditions as he deems fit. Subsidiary legislation 7. (1) This Act shall be deemed to apply to any subsidiary legislation of a designated Act unless excluded in accordance with subsection (2). (2) The relevant Minister may, by notification in Form 2 of the Schedule, after consultation with the Minister, exclude any subsidiary legislation of a designated Act from the application of this Act. (3) The relevant Minister may, by notification in Form 3 of the Schedule, after consultation with the Minister, include any subsidiary legislation which has been excluded under subsection (2), for the purpose of the application of this Act. 10 Laws of Malaysia Act 680 Repeal or amendment 8. (1) Where a designated Act is repealed, such repealed Act shall no longer be the designated Act from the effective date of its repeal save for the subsidiary legislation unaffected by the repeal of the designated Act. (2) Where a designated Act is amended and the relevant Minister is satisfied that the amended Act is inconsistent with the policy or objectives of this Act, the relevant Minister may, in Form 4 of the Schedule, exclude the amended Act or part thereof from the application of this Act. Information Technology Instructions 9. (1) The Minister may issue Information Technology Instructions which may include— (a) information technology standards; (b) the criteria for the electronic signature and appropriate seal for the purpose for which they are used; (c) the process of recording the time and acknowledgment of receipt of the electronic message; (d) security measures against any unauthorized access; (e) disaster recovery procedures; (f) accessibility rules for electronic government services and forms; (g) management and maintenance of the electronic message; (h) methods relating to data entry and verification of the electronic message; (i) guidelines for the payment and receipt of money; and (j) any other matters as may be required from time to time. (2) Non-compliance with any of the Information Technology Instructions shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the activities, which are undertaken electronically pursuant to this Act. Electronic Government Activities 11 Part III LEGAL RECOGNITION OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGE Legal recognition of electronic message 10. (1) Any information shall not be denied legal effect, validity or enforceability on the ground that it is wholly or partly in an electronic form. (2) Any information shall not be denied legal effect, validity or enforceability on the ground that the information is not contained in the electronic message that gives rise to such legal effect, but is merely referred to in that electronic message, provided that the information being referred to is accessible to the person against whom the referred information might be used. Formation and validity of contract 11. (1) In the formation of a contract, the communication of proposals, acceptance of proposals, and revocations of proposals and acceptances or any related communication may be expressed by an electronic message. (2) A contract shall not be denied legal effect, validity or enforceability on the ground that an electronic message is used in its formation. Part IV FULFILMENT OF LEGAL REQUIREMENTS BY ELECTRONIC MEANS Writing 12. Where any law requires information to be in writing, the requirement of the law is fulfilled if the information is contained in an electronic message that is accessible and intelligible so as to be usable for subsequent reference. 12 Laws of Malaysia Act 680 Signature 13. (1) Where any law requires a signature of a person on a document, the requirement of the law is fulfilled if the document is in the form of an electronic message, by an electronic signature which— (a) is attached to or is logically associated with the electronic message; (b) adequately identifies the person and adequately indicates the person’s approval of the information to which the signature relates; and (c) is as reliable as is appropriate given the purpose for which, and the circumstances in which the signature is required. (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(c), an electronic signature is as reliable as is appropriate if— (a) the means of creating the electronic signature is linked to and under the control of that person only; (b) any alteration made to the electronic signature after the time of signing is detectable; and (c) any alteration made to that document after the time of signing is detectable. (3) The Digital Signature Act 1997 [Act 562] shall continue to apply to any digital signature used as an electronic signature in any Government activities. Seal 14. (1) Where any law requires a seal to be affixed to a document, the requirement of the law is fulfilled if the document is in the form of an electronic message, by a digital signature as provided under the Digital Signature Act 1997. (2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), the Minister may, by order in the Gazette, prescribe any other electronic signature that fulfills the requirement of affixing a seal in an electronic message. Electronic Government Activities 13 Witness 15. Where any law requires the signature of a witness on a document, the requirement of the law is fulfilled if the document is in the form of an electronic message, by an electronic signature of the witness which complies with the requirement of section 13. Original form 16. (1) Where any law requires any document to be in its original form, the requirement of the law is fulfilled by a document in the form of an electronic message if— (a) there exists a reliable assurance as to the integrity of the information contained in the electronic message from the time it is first generated in its final form; and (b) the electronic message is accessible and intelligible so as to be usable for subsequent reference. (2) For the purposes of subparagraph (1)(a)— (a) the criteria for assessing the integrity of the information shall be whether the information has remained complete and unaltered, apart from the addition of any endorsement or any change which arises in the normal course of communication, storage and display; and (b) the standard of reliability required shall be assessed in the light of the purpose for which the document was generated and in the light of all other relevant circumstances. Certified true copy 17. Where any law requires submission of a certified true copy of a document, the requirement of the law is fulfilled if the document is submitted in the form of an electronic message and fulfills the requirement under section 16. 14 Laws of Malaysia Act 680 Copy 18. Where any law requires any document to be retained, served, sent or delivered in more than one copy, the requirement of the law is fulfilled if the document is in the form of an electronic message, by retention,