PETALING JAYA, May 24 — The company in charge of the Malaysian Immigration System (myIMMs) said it was being unfairly singled out following revelations over security breaches at the KL International Airport.

HeiTech Padu Berhad Group chief executive officer Arif Mokhtar claimed the department has the final say in allowing people into the country.

“It is unfortunate the shortcomings of the Immigration Department are being blamed on the myIMMs operating system and our company,” he said.

“We are being made the scapegoat for this mess. The system does what it is designed to do and it is up to the Immigration officer on duty to allow an individual into the country.”

Arif gave an assurance the system was secure and reliable with a proven track record and that the Immigration Department had a backup server if the operating system crashes.

He said the server was part of the department’s Disaster Recovery System and maintained by a third party.

“The system shares databases with Interpol’s I-Checkit, Brunei’s Frequent Travellers Facility and the Malaysia Electronic Visa Application System used to process visa applications to Singapore,” he said.

Arif said myIMMs’ link with Interpol’s database would allow officers based at KLIA to detect an individual on the watch list.

“The final decision on whether or not to allow that individual in is a human one. Reports seem to claim the security breaches are deliberate, but it could be plain negligence,” he said.

He said the responsibility of an auxiliary power supply lies with the Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad.

“As the operators of the airport, any auxiliary or backup power supply is their responsibility. It is beyond our scope as we are the systems provider,” he said.

On Sunday, Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said the ministry would set up a task force to review the myIMMs. He had previously called for an overhaul of the system.

“I agree that an extensive overhaul is needed and we are ready to cooperate in any way to improve security,” said Arif.

“I do not know what their (taskforce) mandate is, nor have we been contacted by the Home Ministry yet.”

Arif conceded that while myIMMs was overburdened, upgrading works were underway when news broke about irregularities at immigration entry points at KLIA.

“The system has 29 subsystems operated by third parties outside our control,” he said.

“The upgrades are going to be extensive and will be completed next year.”