Malaysia enforces ban on social media for children
Malaysia has begun enforcing rules banning millions of children under 16 from social media, joining a global effort to tighten online security protections for young users.
The rules require social media platforms to implement age verification systems and prevent users under 16 from creating accounts. It applies to platforms with at least eight million users, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
Companies that fail to comply could face fines of up to 10 million ringgit ($A3.5 million).
However, parents whose children manage to get around the law will not be penalised.
The government said the measures aim to protect children from harmful content, cyberbullying and platform features designed to encourage excessive use.
Other countries, including Australia, Brazil, and Indonesia, have introduced or announced age-based restrictions or requirements for children’s access to social media.
Countries such as the UK, France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea are also working on or developing similar approaches.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission said the rules were not intended to prevent children from accessing the internet or digital technology.
Instead, it sets expectations for service providers to address online harms and ensure age-appropriate precautions are in place.
“These measures help strengthen the protection of children online, while providing parents with additional reassurance to deal with increasingly complex digital risks,” the regulator said in a statement last month.
Platforms will be required to offer security features by design, including protections against manipulative design that encourages compulsive use, and take action against underage accounts and harmful content.
Tech companies have not yet detailed how they will comply with the requirements.
The regulator said platforms will be given additional time to complete the implementation of age verification systems.
Clara Koh, Meta’s director of public policy for Southeast Asia, warned in April that Malaysia’s blanket ban on under-16s could backfire by driving young people away from protected practices and into unregulated corners of the internet.
He said Meta had launched “teen accounts” for those under 18 that limit contact, screen time and exposure to inappropriate content.
Benjamin Loh, a social science lecturer at Monash University in Malaysia, said experience elsewhere showed age-based restrictions were not yet consistently effective.
Without parental penalties, he said, families can easily circumvent the law by creating accounts for their children.
“This is a major loophole that will leave the law having little effect in preventing children from using social media unless regulators are willing to fix it,” he added.
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