MPs’ cell-phones not tapped: Zain

The allegations made by a parliamentarian that mobile phones of MPs are being tapped are totally baseless, says Barrak Al-Sabeeh, the CEO of Zain Kuwait. In an interview with the Arab Times, Al-Sabeeh added: “We wish to clear our stance on this issue that Zain Kuwait is not in any way involved in tapping or bugging of cell phone lines of its customers. We don’t have the technology to do it nor do we intend to ever purchase such equipment.” It may be recalled that an MP had raised a query whether the government was tapping all phones and wanted to know if the mobile service providers were asked to coordinate in this regard.

Reacting to the statement, the Minister of Interior Sheikh Jaber Al-Khaled had categorically denied the allegations that the ministry was tapping all landline and mobile phones, saying “Kuwait is not a police state but a land of institutions.” He also noted that Zain has always been transparent in its dealings and would continue to do so even as he said that some people were under the impression that obtaining the call history was a “piece of cake.” Al-Sabeeh went on to add that the main priority of Zain was to protect the privacy of its customers and a three-member team is tasked with issuing the call history according to strict procedures either upon the request of the phone line owner or an official request from the District Attorney’s office.