Police to monitor Pokemon Go - IGP Khalid
Raffi Bachik
July 23, 2016 11:56 MYT
July 23, 2016 11:56 MYT
He said police will monitor the game for now.
Inspector General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said police will monitor the Pokemon Go game if it poses any security threat.
He said although the application is not officially launched in Malaysia, the smartphone game has caused several issues in other countries including road accidents.
However, he said the police have not decided on whether to ban the game especially among the men in blue although Indonesia had yesterday announced that its civil servants were been ordered not to play Pokemon Go at work in a bid to protect "state secrets",
"We will monitor the situation first before deciding if it should be banned," he said.
"This is a game. If it is against the law, then we will take action. Otherwise it remains a game," he told reporters after attending Aidilfitri celebration at police headquarters in Melaka.
He said police will take action if there are elements such as gambling or inciting hatred in the game.
Resistance is mounting in official circles in Indonesia to Pokemon Go, with the military and police already having banned their personnel from seeking to catch virtual monsters while on duty, and the Jakarta presidential palace prohibiting the game around its premises.
The top echelons of the security establishment have expressed fears that the game's hi-tech capabilities could be used by foreign spies to access sensitive data -- although security experts are sceptical there is any danger.
Pokemon Go uses smartphone satellite location, graphics and camera capabilities to overlay cartoon monsters on real-world settings, challenging players to capture and train the creatures for battles.