Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak has advised heads of Malaysian diplomatic missions abroad to be careful about what they say in the age of social media.

Speaking in general terms at the 8th Heads of Mission Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Najib said this was because even private conversations could be leaked on blogs.

"Coping with the social media and being active social media practitioners is a prerequisite in this age,” he said in a keynote address.

"Beware. Everything we say, even behind closed doors, will find its way on blogs in real time.”

Najib is the first serving Malaysian premier to have a blog, as welll as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.

He has faced constant lampooning on the social media, particularly over his gaffe on the price of kangkung.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anifah Aman ( left ) said in his speech that social media has transformed diplomatic work and posed more challengers.

As such, it is wrong for detractors be "still caught" in Wisma Putra's so-called "glory days".

Anifah: New set of skills needed

"The age of instantaneous information requires a new set of skills and (makes more) demands of diplomats today," Anifah said.

Most recently, Wisma Putra has been slammed, especially on the social media for its apparently sluggishness in extending assistance to a couple detained in Sweden for alleged child abuse.

Azizul Raheem Awalluddin and Shalwati Nurshal's four children - aged seven to 14 years - were placed in a foster home in Sweden for a month before the ministry brought them back to Malaysia, after much fanfare.

The trial against the couple for abusing one of their children is still going on in Sweden.