Deputy communications minister Teo Nie Ching told the Dewan Rakyat that child sexual exploitation content removed by MCMC also surged to 800 this year compared to 34 in 2022, an increase of 2,252%.

In a Bernama report, Teo said the ministry proposed amending the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588) to mandate that anyone found to be distributing explicit content for commercial purposes could face up to five years in jail, a fine of up to RM1 million, or both.

She was responding to a supplementary question from S Kesavan (PH-Sungai Siput) regarding enforcement and regulatory measures to prevent the spread of obscene content targeting youth.

Teo said that AI technology was widely used by scammers, adding that within just 13 days, MCMC managed to identify 274 fake advertisements on Facebook that impersonated the Attorney-General’s Chambers.

“These scammers are paying Meta to deceive Malaysians. We must ensure these platforms are held accountable. They cannot be allowed to accept money from scammers to con Malaysians,” she said.

In response to the original question from Nordin Ahmad Ismail (PN-Lumut) regarding initiatives to encourage social media influencers to produce positive and beneficial content, Teo said her ministry strived to support and promote useful content creation on digital platforms.

She cited the Tun Abdul Razak Broadcasting and Information Institute’s Effective Content Creator on TikTok course as an example of programmes and seminars which could help content creators produce educational and inspiring content.

Teo added that the government had allocated RM30 million to the National Film Development Corporation Malaysia to help youth produce high-quality and creative content, particularly in the film industry.