“Many have asked whether the government intends to follow Australia’s lead in imposing an age limit for access to social media,” Bernama quoted Fahmi, who was a panellist at the Asia International Security Summit & Expo (AISSE) 2025 in Putrajaya, as saying.

“At present, we do not intend to follow exactly what other countries are doing.

“… we will strike a balance by considering the socio-cultural background and the existing legal and regulatory landscape in our country.”

Last month, deputy communications minister Teo Nie Ching said the ministry was looking at the social media ban for minors in Australia and legislation requiring parental consent for children in France in considering whether similar laws should be implemented in Malaysia.

Teo told the Dewan Negara the ministry was assessing how Australia and France intended to enforce such laws, Bernama reported.

While several countries have moved to curb social media use by children through legislation, Australia’s policy – which is set to be enforced by the end of 2025 – is one of the strictest.

Last November, the Australian government passed a law preventing children under the age of 16 from having social media accounts, with fines of up to A$50 million (RM139 million) for companies which fail to comply.

Reuters reported that the age limit was the highest set by any country, and that there would be no exemption for parental consent and pre-existing accounts.

In 2023, France passed a law requiring social media platforms to obtain parental consent for those under 15 to create accounts.

Last September, multinational market research and consulting firm Ipsos found that 71% of Malaysian respondents agreed that children under 14 should be banned from using social media.