Norwegian telecom group Telenor is the target of a class action lawsuit in Norway that accuses its Myanmar unit of handing over phone data for more than 1,200 people to the country’s military rulers after the 2021 coup. The suit, brought by Swedish nonprofit Justice and Accountability Initiative and supported by the Open Society Justice Initiative, seeks €9,000 (about $10,500) in damages for each affected customer.
Plaintiffs allege that the transferred traffic data contributed to human rights abuses, including the 2022 execution of former lawmaker and musician Phyo Zeya Thaw and the arrest and imprisonment of civil society activist Aung Thu. The complaint says the data was used by the junta both while Telenor still ran the operations and after the company had begun its exit from Myanmar.
Telenor is 54% owned by the Norwegian government. The company entered the Myanmar market after winning a government tender in 2013 and began operations in 2014, growing to more than 18 million customers by 2021. The military seized power in January 2021, and amid rising conflict and repression Telenor announced in June 2021 that it intended to sell its local unit, completing the exit in March 2022.
Telenor says it first learned a lawsuit was being prepared in October and maintains its Myanmar subsidiary was legally required to hand over traffic data to authorities. The company has argued that refusing such orders could have put local staff at risk of imprisonment, torture or execution, and described its operations at the time as functioning “in a war zone” with limited options. Telenor has also said it would be horrific if its data were misused but stressed that the junta is solely responsible for the treatment of citizens.
Beini Ye, legal counsel at the Open Society Justice Initiative, says the case could set a precedent: if successful it would be the first to hold a telecommunications company accountable for not sufficiently protecting user data from access by an authoritarian regime.
Individuals named in the complaint have voiced their reasons for seeking redress. Aung Thu told Reuters his information was among the data allegedly shared and said he hopes the case delivers justice for all people in Myanmar. The family of Phyo Zeya Thaw has described his execution as a profound loss for democracy, not only a private bereavement.
The lawsuit places the spotlight on the difficult choices companies face operating under authoritarian rule and raises questions about corporate responsibility, legal obligations, and the protection of customer data in conflict settings.