COMMUNICATIONS ACT AMENDMENTS TO ENHANCE ONLINE SAFETY AND SUSTAINABILITY - FAHMI

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 9 (Bernama) -- Amendments to the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588) aim to create a safer and more sustainable internet ecosystem for all users, says Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil.

He said that the amendments also sought to protect the nation from cyber threats, including paedophilia, child pornography, grooming, online fraud, cyberbullying, and online gambling.

"The goal is to establish a stronger legal framework to address the migration of conventional crimes to online. We must ensure that the online environment is no longer dominated by harmful and excessively obscene content that contradicts Malaysia's identity and values.

"Online safety is a priority. A robust regulatory framework under Act 588 is essential to support industry development, enhance foreign investor confidence, create a business-friendly environment, protect children’s digital well-being, and foster harmony in our multiracial society.

"This is vital for building a progressive Malaysia MADANI nation," he said while tabling the Communications and Multimedia (Amendment) Bill 2024 for its second reading in the Dewan Rakyat today.

Fahmi highlighted that online fraud remained rampant despite various preventive measures, as scammers continuously refined their modus operandi, leveraging advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and automation to make their schemes more sophisticated and harder to detect.

He revealed that Malaysia recorded losses amounting to RM1.224 billion due to online crimes from January to October this year, including telecommunications fraud, e-financial scams, love scams, e-commerce fraud, and non-existent loans and investments.

According to Fahmi, the increasing harm online is evident through the removal of 62,833 scam-related contents on social media platforms from 2022 to Dec 1 this year.

"In the same period, 2,165 prostitution-related contents, 185,858 online gambling-related contents, and 1,947 obscene contents were removed. Of the obscene contents, 71.2 per cent, or 1,387 cases, involved child sexual abuse materials," he added.

Fahmi also emphasised that the government remained committed to upholding the right to freedom of expression as enshrined in Article 10 of the Federal Constitution.

He explained that the amendments to Section 233 included provisions that exempted satire and parody, as long as they were clearly fictional, truthful in substance, and factual statements of opinion from being considered excessively obscene.

"However, this freedom is not absolute and comes with responsibilities and limits to ensure national harmony and safety, as outlined under Article 10(2) of the Federal Constitution.

"The amendments to Act 588, particularly Section 233, aim to strike a balance between safeguarding freedom and upholding the rule of law," he said.

The amendments also enhance investigative processes, especially in preserving, disclosing, storing, and maintaining communication data.

Additionally, Fahmi noted that new provisions introduced for data retention and disclosure aligned with the aspirations of international frameworks such as the United Nations Convention on Cybercrime and the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime. Malaysia is currently considering membership in both conventions.

-- BERNAMA