Social media sites fail to keep under-13s off, minister says

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil expressed concern over social media platforms failing to stop children under 13 years old from registering on their websites.

Despite having age restrictions in place, he highlighted they are often easily circumvented by underaged users.

“The problem is that these platforms only set guidelines.

“We need to find ways to enforce these rules more strictly and prevent children from registering,” he said.

He was speaking to the media after participating in the flagging-off ceremony of the Kembara Merdeka 2024 convoy in Kuala Lumpur today.

The minister pointed out that children often find creative ways to bypass age verification systems, such as borrowing the accounts of older friends or providing false information.

“We know that children are resourceful and will find ways to get around these restrictions.

“It’s clear that these platforms aren’t doing enough to keep children under 13 off their sites.”

Fahmi emphasised that social media companies need to take more serious measures to protect children from the dangers of being on their platforms.

Through licensing, he hopes to implement stricter measures to prevent children from accessing social media platforms and to curb the activities of online predators.

“We want to put an end to paedophiles who use fake accounts to exploit children,” he stated.

Earlier this month, Fahmi said social media platforms that fail to get licensed by Jan 1 next year can be punished with fines and jail time if they continue to operate in Malaysia.

He was responding on whether the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA) had provisions that would allow the government to shut down unlicensed platforms.

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