Malaysia unveils plans for an internet
Malaysia is working on legislation for an “internet kill switch,” according to Azalina Othman Said, the country’s Minister of Law and Institutional Reforms.
Although the details Said provided in a written statement posted on Twitter (written in Malay and narrated via The register) are scarce, luddites and anarchists who dream of destruction will be disappointed. The minister strongly suggested that it is an attempt to pressure social media companies to do more to combat online abuse and illegal material distributed through their platforms.
The minister said in her statement that this, and the government’s desire to explicitly define cyberbullying (implying it could become a crime in the country), is nothing new and is “in line with legislative initiatives being enforced in several other countries.”
Malaysia is currently focusing heavily on the issue of perceived irresponsibility of social media platforms.
Recently, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) revealed a “new regulatory framework” that would require “all social media services and internet messaging services with at least eight million users” to obtain a license to operate in the country.
It added that failure to comply with the measure, which is designed to “create a safer online ecosystem and a better user experience, especially for children and families”, would result in “appropriate legal action”, which it did not define but almost certainly refers to the term “kill switch”.
The framework will enter into force on 1 August 2024, while its enforcement will commence on 1 January 2025.
