Norwegian telecom operator Telenor is facing renewed scrutiny over its former operations in Myanmar, after reports revealed that sensitive user data was shared with the military junta following the 2021 coup. The disclosures suggest that the information was used to track and arrest democracy activists, some of whom were later executed.
According to Norwegian broadcaster NRK and The Business and Human Rights Ressource centre, Telenor complied with more than 1,300 data requests from the junta, handing over phone records, call logs, SMS data, addresses, and location information. Among those targeted was Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, as well as young supporters of Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement. Telenor has stated that refusing such demands could have endangered the lives of its employees.
The case has taken on added gravity after the Myanmar based media Mizzima published revelations that Telenor’s transfer of metadata enabled the junta to locate 88 Generation Students leader Ko Jimmy, also known as Kyaw Min Yu, who has gone into hiding follwing the coup. He was arrested in 23 October 2021, and executed on 23 July 2022.
Former Norwegian Burma Committee director Audun Aagre said Telenor had been warned that failing to delete sensitive data risked complicity in crimes against humanity.
Telenor, majority-owned by the Norwegian government, sold its Myanmar operations in 2022 to Lebanon’s M1 Group and a local partner with junta ties. The operator was later rebranded as Atom, though rights groups allege that the military retains access to user data under the new ownership.
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