The Communications Ministry is looking into stronger enforcement mechanisms to prevent children under the age of 13 from creating social media accounts, according to its minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil. Speaking in Parliament today on 29 July 2025, he pointed out that while most platforms already prohibit underage users, the rule is frequently ignored.
“Unfortunately, if you go to any school and ask students under 13 whether they have TikTok accounts, many will say yes – and that is a breach (of terms), acknowledged even by TikTok,” the minister said. Fahmi noted that his ministry is currently exploring methods to improve enforcement of age restrictions, stressing that online child protection is a collective responsibility shared by the government, platforms, and parents.
Between 1 January 2022 and 15 July this year, Fahmi revealed that 1,443 items of harmful or extreme content involving children were removed by platforms at the request of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC). These takedowns were based on violations of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, as well as the platforms’ own community guidelines.
To better equip teenagers for life in an increasingly complex digital world, the ministry is also introducing digital literacy modules aimed at those aged 13 and above. He explained that these are to ensure teenagers understand the information landscape they live in and the steps they need to take to stay vigilant, as not everything seen on social media is necessarily trustworthy.
Earlier this year, Fahmi said the government will not set an age limit for children to use social media and will instead adopt a more “balanced approach” to address online safety issues. He added that Malaysia has no plans to follow the lead of other countries, such as Australia and France, in imposing age restriction rules for online access.
(Source: The Star)
