Licensed social media platforms have until Dec 28 to submit their online safety plans to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), and are expected to start checking users’ ages in early January, Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching said on Wednesday (Nov 11).
She said the plans, required under the Online Safety Act 2025 (Act 866), must detail the measures and improvements the platform providers intend to put in place to ensure a safer digital environment for users.
Teo was replying in the Dewan Rakyat to Wong Shu Qi (PH-Kluang), who asked about the platforms’ compliance with age verification requirements, including the number of accounts verified and blocked, and the action that would be taken against service providers that fail to meet their obligations.
“We are still in the transition period, and we expect platforms to implement this obligation in early January next year,” Teo said, adding that data on the number of accounts the platforms had verified and closed would be submitted to MCMC after the transition period.
She said MCMC had issued directives to social media service providers, including Meta, TikTok and Google, to put age verification mechanisms in place, and had asked for the relevant information to monitor and assess their compliance.
Licensed service providers that fail to fulfil their obligations under the Act could face enforcement action, including fines of up to RM1 million and an additional fine of up to RM100,000 for each day the offence continues after conviction, she said.
On the threat posed by fake accounts and hate speech, Teo said the age verification mechanism for social media users aged 16 and above did not involve verifying their identities. As such, it would not directly address the problem of fake accounts, which required further study and discussion on the appropriate measures.
Codes made under the Act that took effect on June 1 already require licensed platforms to ensure that only users aged 16 and above can create new accounts, which means children under 16 can no longer open accounts on major social media platforms. The Dec 28 deadline and the start of age checks in January will affect the millions of Malaysians who use social media.