'Social media owners to be held responsible in new cyberbullying law'

Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo has proposed that a new law placing responsibility for misuse of social media, including cyberbullying, on social media platform owners, be introduced.

He said he, together with Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said brought up the cyberbullying issue, including the recent death of TikTok influencer A Rajeswari, better known as Esha, during Friday’s cabinet meeting. 

“I also suggested that a new law be considered to place the responsibility on platform owners to ensure misuse does not occur and if it does, immediate action can be taken to prevent such a situation from happening.

“We need to send a clear signal that we are serious in looking for a solution for this problem and every related party has a vital role to play for that purpose,” he said in a statement yesterday.

He added that existing laws, especially the Communications and Multimedia Act, the Penal Code and the Computer Crimes Act are enforceable.

“We need to ensure that platforms are safe in terms of cybersecurity, personal data protection and most importantly cannot be misused by anyone.

“Cyberbullying cases must be taken seriously and tackled immediately. We need to ensure that laws are drafted to avoid misuse and if it occurs, swift action is taken,” Gobind said.

Fahmi had announced during the post-cabinet meeting media conference that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had asked the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission and the police to take stern action against cyberbullying cases.

The government spokesperson said the prime minister expressed his disappointment about the cyberbullying incident that led to the death of a TikTok influencer recently.

- Bernama

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