IPOH — The Communications Ministry will monitor and take additional measures if any social media platforms fail to enforce their own age restrictions for users.
Minister Fahmi Fadzil said this follows the introduction of social media platform licensing, which will come into effect on Jan 1.
He noted that most social media platforms currently set a minimum user age of 13 years.
“We want to see how they enforce this age restriction based on the standards they have already established.
“If they fail or the enforcement is unsatisfactory, we will consider additional measures,” he said during a press conference at the Perak Economic Outlook 2025 Programme here today.
Fahmi was asked if Malaysia would follow Australia’s move to ban children under the age of 16 from using social media platforms.
He said his ministry leaves the enforcement of age restrictions to social media platforms themselves to ensure policy stability, as the government does not want to curb freedom of expression.
“I take note of views like those of Dr Apurva Sanghi (Lead Economist for Malaysia at the World Bank) on policy stability. This is because we have discussed these issues with all social media platforms, and these platforms are huge and make billions of ringgit every year from Malaysia.
“Our discussions have been consistent from the start, and we want to provide that kind of policy stability and visibility so that the top management of these companies understands.
“We do not want to restrict freedom of expression; we want to restrict freedom of criminals from using these platforms,” he added.
Fahmi said social media and internet messaging platforms with at least eight million users are now in the final stages of registering for the Class Licence for Applications Services Provision under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.
Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Communications Teo Nie Ching told the Dewan Negara that the ministry was assess laws in Australia and France where parental consent is required for children to use social media if they are under 16 and 15, respectively.
“At this stage, we are assessing how Australia and France intend to enforce such laws because the first issue arises when parents provide their children with phones. How do we ensure that children under the ages of 13 or 16 do not download social media apps onto their phones?,” she said
“So, who will be responsible for monitoring this? If someone violates the law by downloading social media apps, who do we penalise—the parents, the children, or the platform providers?
“There are indeed many practical issues that need thorough evaluation before any decision is made,” she said during a question and answer session with the Senate.
Senator Manolan Mohamad had asked Teo if the government plans to emulate Australia’s ban of social media use for children under 16, set to be enforced by the end of 2025.
Teo said recent findings show that half of those aged 13 to 17 spend an average of three hours daily on their phones.
“This is a phenomenon that requires serious attention and the cooperation of all parties.
“Teachers have their roles, and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has its responsibilities. Most importantly, parents play a very significant role,” she said.
In response to Manolan’s initial question about the minimum age for registering social media accounts, she said the Community Guidelines of most social media platform operators set it at 13 years of age. – December 19, 2024