On Wednesday, 21 October 2026, Bernama reported that Malaysian civil servants are banned from using Waze with immediate effect. The decision came from the National Cyber Security Committee (JKSN), which met on Tuesday. It is a ban on the state apparatus, not a nationwide ban for the public.

Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar sent a circular dated 20 October. He wrote that JKSN Meeting No. 3 of 2026 was chaired by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. Secretaries-general and department heads must tell officers under them, including related agencies, and apply the order at once.

The letter goes to ministry secretaries-general, heads of federal departments, heads of federal statutory bodies, state government secretaries and heads of local authorities. Queries go to the National Cyber Security Agency (NACSA), with the National Security Council and the Prime Minister’s Department as coordinating agency. Shamsul Azri asked for full compliance at ministry, department and agency level.

On Tuesday Anwar encouraged the public to use TuJu, the Malaysian Highway Authority’s navigation app. He said Waze is bound by Israeli government law and that this brings risks to movement data. That is a recommendation to citizens, not the same act as the KSN circular. Malay Mail on Wednesday carried both the ban on civil servants and the appeal to the public.

TuJu was launched on 26 November 2025 by Works Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi, with Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd. It is on Google Play and the App Store: routes, distance, ETA, tolls, live traffic, rest areas, CCTV and emergency help. The launch is from 2025, not from Tuesday.

The order does not take Waze off the app stores and does not punish private drivers. Who accessed which data, and whether Israeli law applies as the prime minister said, remain government claims, not findings of a court.

Image: Perdana Putra, Putrajaya, 4 August 2024, Stress 043, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The government complex in 2024, not the day of the circular.

Sources consulted: Anggota Perkhidmatan Awam Dilarang Guna Waze Serta-merta — KSN — Bernama; Civil Servants Banned From Using Waze With Immediate Effect — KSN — Bernama; Find another way: Civil servants effectively banned from using Waze app due to Israel ties — Malay Mail.