KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia has not ruled out a complete ban on the use of the Waze navigation application, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has said, citing national security concerns over the app’s Israeli headquarters and its governance under Israeli law.
Anwar urged Malaysians not to compromise national security for the convenience of using an Israeli application. He said Waze could potentially be used for foreign intelligence operations because its headquarters are based in Israel and its terms of service are governed by Israeli law.
“If the issue concerns national security, then it must be taken seriously. How can civil servants compromise on this?” Anwar told reporters after Friday prayers in Ampang, Kuala Lumpur.
The Prime Minister said he had ordered an investigation and review of Waze’s agreement during a recent cybersecurity meeting. “If you use the Waze app, it automatically hands over all information to Israel. So we must not make that mistake,” he said.
Anwar called on Malaysians to use alternative navigation applications until the locally developed TuJu app is fully ready. He acknowledged that TuJu had shortcomings and was not yet able to handle the sudden surge in users, but said safety must take priority over convenience.
“Even if the journey is a little longer, that is acceptable, rather than handing over information to Israel,” he said.
Anwar said criticism of his decision would not change the government’s position, adding that national security was more important than public convenience. He also noted that Malaysia strongly opposes the Israeli regime and expects heightened scrutiny of its actions.