<p>An anti-junta activist has accused AIS, one of Thailand’s biggest mobile phone service providers, of unlawfully revealing private information about him.</p> <p>Piyarat ‘Toto’ Chongthep, an anti-junta activist, told the media during his trial on 14 June 2017 at Prakhanong Provincial Court in Bangkok that AIS illegally gave private information about him to the authorities.</p> <p>He said that during the trial, an AIS staff member who was called to testify revealed information about his whereabouts and of two other accused, including mobile banking information before and after 7 August 2016.</p>

<p dir="ltr">International rights organisations have expressed concerns that the amendment of the Computer Crime Act might violate the rights to freedom of expression and to privacy.</p> <p dir="ltr">On Thursday, 26 May 2016, Amnesty International, the Thai Netizen Network (TNN) and Privacy International handed a joint statement to Pol Gen Chatchawan Suksomjit, Chair of the National Legislative Assembly (NLA) committee vetting the amended version of the Computer Crime Act.</p>

<p>The Thai police have been notorious for their use of torture to force confessions and the arrest of scapegoats. The two Myanmar suspects accused of killing two British backpackers on Thailand’s Koh Tao Island are good examples. In the restive Deep South, lawyers say that security officers regularly torture insurgent suspects to get confessions since the Thai police do not have enough evidence to issue arrest warrants by normal means. The Thai police are now aiming to optimize investigations by pushing for a law which will allow police from all divisions to intercept suspects’ communications. However, experts say the bill could ironically end up aggravating police abuses.</p> <p></p>