January 25, 2022
Myanmar’s military junta has floated a cyber security law that would potentially ban digital currency in the country.
The draft bill, dated January 13 is signed by Soe Thein, permanent secretary of the military’s transport and communications ministry and is undergoing request for comments until January 28.
Here is what do you need to know:
• The draft bill, once enacted, will subject VPN users to between one and three years inside, and fines of up to five million Myanmar Kyats ($2,800).
• The bill also bans the use of digital currency, under penalty of imprisonment for six months to a year.
• It also forces service providers to provide the personal information of users – like name, address and access history – to authorities if requested.
• Similar rules have caused foreign telecom companies to leave the country in the past. Norwegian mobile carrier Telenor left in September 2021 when the ruling junta wanted to intercept calls carried on its network.
About the author
Tsering Namgyal is the chief content officer of Blockchain Asset Review.
