KUCHING, May 22 — Global short-video platform TikTok is strengthening its commitment to enhancing platform safety features through the TikTok Community Guidelines.

TikTok Malaysia public policy manager Aliff Zakaria said TikTok is also collaborating with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to ensure content published complies with national laws and respects local cultural sensitivities.

He said the move is aimed at ensuring its global community, including more than 450 million users in Southeast Asia and Malaysians, can use the application in a healthy, positive and creative manner.

“We have more than 40,000 multilingual moderators worldwide who are proficient in more than 30 languages to assess and review content.

“If there are reports of violations of laws or cultural sensitivities, firm action will be taken immediately,” he said during a session on Sharing Online Safety Tips held in conjunction with the Safe Internet Campaign Community Carnival at the Kuching district level here today.

Commenting on the safety of teenagers, he said the platform adopts a “Safety by Design” approach by automatically imposing strict age restrictions.

“Users under the age of 16 are strictly prohibited from using the direct messaging feature, while the function to send or receive gifts is only available to users aged 18 and above to protect minors.

“To balance screen time and address gadget addiction issues, TikTok also empowers parents through the Family Pairing feature,” he said.

Aliff said through the Family Pairing feature, parents are given access to more than 50 safety tools to monitor their children, such as setting TikTok usage time limits, blocking access during family mealtimes and controlling the types of topics and keywords their children can view.

He said the application is also equipped with automatic bedtime notifications at 11 pm or midnight to ensure teenagers get adequate rest, in addition to a screen time approval system that requires direct parental consent if children request additional time.

Aliff also said TikTok is not only an entertainment platform, but also provides a dedicated Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics tab to educate children on current issues such as AI development.

He said the platform is also actively used by teachers to share school modules and examination tutorials such as for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia.

“Parents are encouraged to make use of these safety features and educational content together with their children to create a balanced and beneficial digital ecosystem for the future,” he said. — Bernama

PUTRAJAYA, May 22 — Two new codes under the Online Safety Act (ONSA) 2025, the Child Protection Code (CPC) and Risk Mitigation Code (RMC), will take effect June 1, requiring digital platforms to take stricter action against harmful content and better protect children online.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) said in a statement today that both codes were developed following engagement sessions with industry players, civil society organisations and stakeholders, including a public consultation held from February 12 to March 31.

MCMC said a reasonable implementation period will be given to service providers to ensure the verification process is completed in an orderly manner.

“These codes set clear expectations for service providers to take greater responsibility in addressing harmful content on their platforms, particularly in protecting children and vulnerable users.

“The implementation approach under these codes is outcomes-based, giving service providers the flexibility to implement solutions that align with safety, privacy and legal requirements,” the statement read.

MCMC added that the CPC and RMC are important steps in strengthening Malaysia’s approach to online safety.

“The implementation of these key obligations under ONSA is also part of the government’s ongoing efforts to ensure a safer digital experience for children and families.

“This step helps strengthen child protection in the online environment, while giving parents added confidence in navigating increasingly complex digital risks,” the statement read.

Under the CPC, platform providers are required to apply safety by design, including restricting under-16 account registration and ownership, introducing age-appropriate protections, and limiting certain functions that could expose children to risk, thereby reducing exposure to exploitative and harmful content.

Meanwhile, the RMC requires service providers to implement proactive and comprehensive measures to mitigate the risk of harmful content.

These include risk assessments, stronger content governance, effective reporting and response mechanisms, advertiser verification measures and labelling of manipulated content. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, May 21 — The Johor Royal Press Office has called for stern action to be taken against those responsible for creating a fake TikTok account to slander and insult His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia.

According to a post on the King’s official Facebook page, the Royal Press Office said the account, using the name “Sultan Ibrahim Ismail”, was found to be using Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to spread insulting content against His Majesty.

Among the uploaded content was a video containing allegations that the King of Malaysia enjoyed eating pork, a post that it described as untrue and touching on sensitivities, given that His Majesty was a Malay Ruler and the Muslim Head of State.

“The Royal Press Office also expresses regret over another image in the account which depicted His Majesty’s face superimposed onto the body of an animal, which was clearly insulting and irresponsible,” the statement said.

According to the statement, the act constituted a very serious and malicious insult against the royal institution.

“In this regard, the Royal Press Office hopes that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission will take stern action against those involved,” it said. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, May 20 — Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil said the use of official documents such as MyKad for age verification is already a common practice in Malaysia and is not inconsistent with existing digital verification systems.

He said identity verification using official documents is widely adopted across various sectors, particularly in e-wallet services and other digital platforms.

“From a policy perspective, it is well understood that age verification in this country currently makes use of documents such as MyKad and similar forms of identification.

“As a personal experience, when I went through verification for my Facebook Verified account, I also had to submit documents to Facebook to confirm that the account belonged to me,” he said during the ministry’s weekly press conference here today.

He was commenting on the government’s proposal to restrict social media access for those under the age of 16 through verification systems reliant on MyKad or e-KYC processes.

He added that the government does not view the use of official documents for age verification as contradictory to current practices in other industries.

He also said the Personal Data Protection Act would apply to the handling and management of personal data throughout such verification processes.

He added that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) would hold a special media briefing to explain technical and policy aspects of the proposal involving MyKad-linked or e-KYC verification systems.

SHAH ALAM, May 19 — A housewife who was previously granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) for posting offensive comments on Facebook against the King, His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, was today charged again at the Sessions Court here with the same offence.

The fresh charge follows a Federal Court ruling that the words “offensive” and “annoy” in the relevant law are valid and constitutional. Suhaila Abd Halim, 40, pleaded not guilty after the charge was read out to her once more.

She is accused of knowingly making and posting offensive comments against the King with the intent to annoy others. The comments were seen at 8.30am on January 5, 2025, at Sungai Buloh Hospital.

The mother of six was charged under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998, which is punishable by a fine of up to RM50,000, or imprisonment for up to one year, or both, as well as a further fine of RM1,000 for each day the offence persists after conviction.

Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) deputy public prosecutor Fadhli Ab Wahab and prosecuting officer Mohamad Azmir Mohd Razali appeared for the prosecution, while Suhaila was represented by lawyer Rushilan Gunalan.

Fadhli proposed bail of RM10,000 with one surety, while Rushilan requested a lower amount, arguing that his client is from the B40 income group and still has a breastfeeding child.

Judge Nor Hasniah Ab Razak allowed the accused to be released on bail of RM7,000 with one surety, ordering her to report to the nearest MCMC office once a month until the case is resolved. The court then set July 17 for further mention.

On July 7 last year, Suhaila pleaded not guilty to the charge at the Shah Alam Sessions Court. However, she was granted a DNAA on September 17, 2025, following a Court of Appeal ruling that had declared the words “offensive” and “annoy” in Section 233(1)(a) of the CMA 1998 unconstitutional.

The Court of Appeal had struck down those words after allowing an appeal by activist Heidy Quah to set aside a High Court decision that had dismissed her suit in 2023.

But on February 6 this year, the Federal Court reversed that position, ruling that the words “offensive” and “annoy” are valid and consistent with the Constitution. This reversal led to Suhaila being charged again today. — Bernama

GEORGE TOWN, May 19 — Penang volunteer fire brigades have lodged a police report against a Facebook user over allegations linking the organisations to money laundering and tax evasion activities.

One of the volunteers, Goh Chin Wah, said the allegations made by the individual using the username “Yoong Hai” had tarnished the reputation of volunteer fire brigades in the state.

“This will affect public confidence in the volunteer work that we do and it might make it difficult for us to get donations in future,” he said at a press conference called by state exco H’ng Mooi Lye.

He said the comment made by “Yoong Hai” also linked donations made to volunteer fire brigades to money laundering and tax evasion schemes.

“This does not only affect the reputation of volunteer fire brigades in Penang but around the world,” he said.

Representatives from volunteer fire brigades in Penang lodged a police report yesterday against the comment made by “Yoong Hai”.

Meanwhile, H’ng said there are 38 volunteer fire brigade teams in Penang.

He said the state allocates RM10,000 annually to each team, while the teams have to cover other costs through public donations.

“We cannot control what people want to say online, but the statement linking volunteer fire brigades to money laundering and tax evasion schemes is very serious and damaging,” he said.

He said the allegations could undermine public confidence and affect donation drives carried out by volunteer fire brigades.

He read out the post uploaded by “Yoong Hai”, who accused volunteer fire brigades of being ineffective during emergency situations.

The post also claimed that some of the volunteer fire brigades were established to facilitate illegal money laundering activities and tax evasion through public donations.

H’ng said the allegations surfaced following a recent vehicle fire incident near the Jalan Udini tunnel.

“This will affect the brigades when they approach the public for donations or assistance,” he said.

He said he would also seek the assistance of Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching to refer the matter to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

He urged the public to verify information before sharing or believing claims circulated on social media.

KUALA LUMPUR, May 15 — A majority of the stakeholders who submitted feedback to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) during its public consultation on proposed draft codes under the Online Safety Act 2025 showed broad support for flexible, risk-based age assurance measures over a single mandatory age verification model.

The consultation received feedback from 21 respondents, including technology companies such as TikTok Service Pte Ltd, Meta, Google, X Corp., Roblox and rednote (Xiaohongshu), alongside telecommunications providers including Maxis, CelcomDigi, Telekom Malaysia, Time dotCom, YTL Communications and Astro.

According to MCMC’s public consultation report, respondents broadly favoured a proportionate and risk-based framework in which the level of age assurance applied corresponds to the level of harm or risk posed by a particular service.

Instead of relying solely on hard identity checks or government-issued records, respondents advocated a multi-layered age assurance approach that combines different signals and interventions. This, they said, would better balance child protection objectives with privacy safeguards.

Feedback also drew attention to international regulatory approaches, including Australia’s Social Media Minimum Age framework, the United Kingdom’s Online Safety Act 2023, and the European Union’s Digital Services Act, which all emphasise proportionate or “reasonable steps” approaches without mandating a single technical solution.

A consistent concern raised across submissions was that mandatory verification using government-issued identity documents could conflict with data minimisation principles and privacy protections. 

Respondents warned that such requirements could force platforms or third-party vendors to collect and store sensitive personal data of millions of users, most of whom are adults.

They further cautioned that this could create centralised repositories of highly sensitive information, increasing exposure to cybersecurity risks and potential large-scale data breaches, with some noting that the resulting harm could outweigh the intended child safety benefits.

Related concerns were raised on proportionality, transparency and human rights implications. 

Respondents said identity-linked verification systems could create infrastructure capable of tracking how individuals access and consume information online, while also highlighting limited public information on the procurement process for any third-party verification vendors.

Submissions also noted that strict verification requirements could disproportionately affect vulnerable and marginalised groups, including undocumented persons and refugees, potentially undermining inclusive access to digital services.

On enforcement approaches, some respondents cautioned against mandatory pre-publication assessments of content, describing such measures as potentially amounting to pre-publication censorship that could affect freedom of expression.

Respondents also called for greater clarity in the definition of harmful content, with some stating that existing definitions may be too broad for effective implementation and compliance.

Across submissions, stakeholders also stressed the importance of allowing adequate implementation time, with suggestions that service providers be given up to 12 months from finalisation of the Risk Mitigation Code for compliance purposes, including system adjustments and operational preparation.

MCMC said respondents consistently supported stronger child safety protections but urged a framework that is proportionate, practical and adaptable to different service models.

“The Commission will consider stakeholders’ feedback in finalising the proposed codes under ONSA,” it said.

The finalised codes will set out compliance obligations for licensed service providers under the Online Safety Act 2025.

Other respondents included Unicef, the Malaysian Bar, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam), the Malaysian Media Council, the Institute of Strategic & International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia, the Asia Tech Alliance, the US-ASEAN Business Council, ARTICLE 19, the Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ), Sinar Project, and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (OCSEA) Working Group together with ECPAT Malaysia.

MAY 15 — In November 2025, leaked internal Meta documents revealed that the platform was deriving substantial revenue from advertising activities linked to online scams and prohibited goods.

These revelations found that Meta had failed to prevent the dissemination of approximately 15 billion “high-risk” advertisements to users each day, generating an estimated US$7 billion (around RM29 billion) in annualised revenue from ads exhibiting clear indicators of fraud.

The problem appears to have been further exacerbated by Meta’s advertising personalisation engine, which systematically amplifies users’ exposure to fraudulent content.

Rather than functioning as a protective mechanism, the system uses prior engagement signals to optimise and deliver additional high-risk advertisements, effectively transforming victims into prime targets for repeated scams.

Notwithstanding Meta’s unsatisfactory explanation, an important question arises as to what extent the newly enforced Online Safety Act 2025 can provide effective protection and remedies for the RM2.77 billion in losses arising from financial scams last year.

The sharp rise in both the number of cases and the resulting losses calls for a careful examination of advertising practices.

In an era where digital deception evolves as rapidly as the technology it inhabits, the public law injunction has emerged as a critical tool for regulatory bodies to protect the collective interests of online users.

While private litigation addresses individual harm, public law enforcement focuses on the prevention of systemic unfair commercial practices that threaten users’ safety and economic stability.

The Online Safety Act 2025 (the Act) imposes obligations on social media and messaging platforms with over 8 million users in Malaysia, classifying them as licensees required to comply with the law.

The Act includes measures to mitigate the risk of exposure to harmful content (Section 13), issue guidelines to users (Section 14), enable users to manage their online safety (Section 15), provide mechanisms for reporting harmful content (Section 16) and user assistance (Section 17), protect the online safety of child users (Section 18), establish procedures to make priority harmful content inaccessible (Section 19), and prepare an Online Safety Plan (Section 20).

In addition, the Act also specifies the actions that must be taken by the licensees to ensure compliance and effective implementation of these provisions.

The Online Safety Committee has the power to instruct the platforms to make the harmful content permanently inaccessible on its service to all users upon determination of the harmful content.

Non-compliance with the Act carries a maximum financial penalty of RM10 million (Section 39).

The Online Safety Act 2025 provides a systemic risk management framework and platform accountability framework for content policing.

Public law injunction has been a cornerstone of consumer protection and market regulation for decades, serving as a means to stop harmful commercial practices and malpractice. — Picture via Pexels

Despite its novelty in implementing safety by design, which requires social media and messaging platforms to submit annual online safety plans to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

Relying on platforms’ online safety plans has limitations in preventing scam advertising because these plans often prioritize automated filtering over human oversight, allowing sophisticated scammers to bypass detection using AI-generated content.

Furthermore, since these plans are self-reported, they may lack the transparency needed for regulators to verify if the safety protocols are being strictly enforced in real-time.

Finally, the reactive nature of most safety plans means that fraudulent ads are often only removed after the financial damage has already occurred, highlighting the need for more aggressive public law injunctions to stop scams at the source.

Public law injunction has been a cornerstone of consumer protection and market regulation for decades, serving as a means to stop harmful commercial practices and malpractice.

Changes in design, safety plans from reporting, investigations, evidence gathering, and procedures in ensuring compliance take time and often allow fraudulent campaigns to achieve their maximum impact before any regulatory action is finalised.

While internal platform safety plans are essential for long-term systemic health, they are fundamentally slow-moving administrative processes that struggle to keep pace with the agility of modern scammers.

To bridge this gap, authorities should utilise public law injunction as a rapid-response mechanism.

Unlike the lengthy audit cycles of an Online Safety Plan, an injunction serves as an immediate “emergency brake”, allowing regulators to bypass procedural delays and legally compel platforms to freeze scam accounts or remove deceptive advertisements in real-time.

By deploying injunction alongside statutory investigations, it can prevent widespread financial loss while the more time-consuming work of evidence gathering and compliance auditing continues in the background.

In the landmark case of Zschimmer & Schwarz GMBH & Co. KG Chemische Fabriken v Persons Unknown and Mohammad Azuwan bin Othman (t/a Premier Outlook Services) 7 MLJ 178, the Malaysian high court had established a precedent for granting injunctions against “Persons Unknown”.

Utilising public law injunctions against “Persons Unknown” to combat anonymous cybercrime and scam advertising should serve as an immediate priority, allowing for the immediate freezing of the advertising scam, while awaiting the Online Safety Act 2025 transitions into full operation.

* The author is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law, Universiti Malaya and can be reached at tzechinong@um.edu.my

** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.