KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 — The Communications and Digital Ministry (KKD) will carry on blocking social media platforms with content that can influence, affect and compromise public morals.
Its minister, Fahmi Fadzil, said the blocks by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) also cover websites used for various purposes, including promoting sex products and deviant sexual practices.
He said 7,097 such websites were blocked between 2018 and November 30, and similar action will continue to be taken to curb social media misuse.
“KKD is serious and committed to curbing social media misuse on various gadgets that could breach our country’s laws, including sex and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) related content and ads.
“Besides monitoring for acts or content that contravene the Communications and Multimedia Act 1988, steps to curb such cases will be followed by bringing down such content, enforcement and prosecution,” he said while winding up the debate on the Supply Bill 2024 for the ministry at the Dewan Negara today.
The MCMC is also working with various social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram and TikTok, as part of efforts to curb pornographic content on social media, Fahmi said, adding that 599 instances of pornographic content were removed from early this year till November 30, with Instagram registering the highest number at 107, Facebook (54), Telegram (44), X (18), TikTok (eight) and other platforms (368).
He also shared that the Malaysian Digital Economic Corporation (MDEC) is identifying local digitalisation partners capable of providing support and consultancy services for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME).
This was part of the effort to prepare access to digital platforms and solutions, as mentioned in the MADANI MSME Digital Grant introduced this year.
“MDEC is also encouraging digitalisation partners to offer freemium technology and digital solutions so that the enterprises can use them for free.
“Interested enterprises need only produce payment when they want to use the full solutions,” he said, adding that such methods would help MSMEs identify the benefits of digital technology and solutions for their businesses and boost usage among them.
Fahmi said it was being implemented after initial findings of the National MSME Digitalisation Roadmap (NMDR) by MDEC indicated that 36 per cent of companies in the country used emerging technologies and that social media was becoming an important tool for customer experience in business, with 58 per cent of MSMEs using social media to market their products.
In the efforts to promote government initiatives and easily understood infographics, Fahmi said the ministry, through the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama), had produced and published news reports and infographics relating to programmes and the types of government assistance available to the people.
This included producing news about developments of the national economy, analyses by experts and forms or discussions in various television and radio programmes to boost public understanding about economic issues, cost of living, inflation and subsidies.
“All news reports, infographics and programmes are based on authoritative sources, including the Finance Ministry, the Economic Affairs Ministry, the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry and other stakeholders,” he added.
— Bernama
