Last week, the Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) – whose members include tech giants Google, Meta and X – published an open letter to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim urging him to pause the plan after claiming it lacked clarity.
Under the regulatory framework, social media platforms and messaging services with more than eight million users can face legal action if they fail to obtain licences by Jan 1, 2025.
In an eight-page letter to AIC today, MCMC told the coalition that Malaysia’s move to introduce the licensing framework is not much different from online service providers’ (OSPs) efforts to enforce community guidelines on users.
The internet regulator said if OSPs’ unilateral initiative to impose community guidelines can be welcomed as a reasonable safety measure, a regulatory framework grounded on safety, security, transparency and accountability should be accepted and adhered to in the same spirit.
“The OSPs have a legal responsibility to protect its users and ensure they comply with Malaysian law when operating in the Malaysian sovereign digital space,” said MCMC.
“There is no inconsistency with the requirement of licensing regulation and the operation of any business, and no reason why both cannot co-exist to benefit the people and the OSPs.
“A secure and safe online space with clear responsibilities is a precondition to sustainable digitalisation.”
MCMC stressed that the licensing regime is a critical tool to ensure that OSPs operate within a framework that protects users from harmful content and cyber threats, noting that recent statistics clearly demonstrate a worrying trend of increasing harmful online content over the years.
It said harassment-related removals saw a notable rise from 290 cases in 2022 to 6,353 cases up to July 2024. Similarly, requests related to fraud skyrocketed from 245 cases in 2022 to 32,955 cases up to July 2024, reflecting a “staggering” growth in online scams, said MCMC.
On AIC’s concerns about criminal liability for OSPs, MCMC said that imposing criminal liability on “irresponsible, reckless and unsafe OSPs” is essential in ensuring that they take their responsibilities seriously, especially in preventing the spread of illegal content.
It said this measure is in line with international practices and is designed to protect the public without stifling the operations of legitimate businesses.
MCMC also said it strongly refutes AIC’s claim that there have been no formal public consultations, stating the allegation is “factually incorrect, baseless, and without merit”.
MCMC said it has taken all reasonable steps to engage, facilitate and assist OSPs as they work towards compliance ahead of the enforcement date on Jan 1, 2025, noting that AIC’s representatives have also attended its engagement sessions.
It also pointed out that MCMC and communications minister Fahmi Fadzil have met representatives from Meta (the parent company of Facebook/Instagram/WhatsApp), X, Google, YouTube, Tencent, and ByteDance to discuss the regulations.
The letter was issued by MCMC’s chief network security officer Sulaiman Sultan Suhaibuddeen on behalf of the commission’s chairman Salim Fateh Din.
Earlier today, Fahmi said that while the government would discuss with industry groups its plan to require social media platforms to apply for licences, Putrajaya has no plans to delay the regulations’ implementation.