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THE amendments to the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 [Act 588] take effect today following their gazettement on Feb 7.
In a statement today reported by Bernama, the Ministry of Communications said the amendments, passed by the Dewan Rakyat last December, aim to create a safer and more sustainable Internet ecosystem for users.
"This will provide better protection, particularly for children and families," the statement read.
On Dec 9, the Dewan Rakyat passed the Communications and Multimedia (Amendment) Bill 2024 through a bloc vote, with 59 Members of Parliament in favour, 40 against, one abstaining, and 122 absent.
Minister of Communications Fahmi Fadzil, in winding up the debate on the Bill, emphasised that Section 233 of Act 588 was retained to prevent network misuse, particularly for commercial purposes such as the sale of pornographic and paedophilic content.
The amendment to Section 211 does not apply to the general public but specifically to licenced Content Applications Service Providers (CASP). The penalties under this section have been revised to reflect current developments.
In addition, the amendments introduce stricter penalties, including a maximum prison sentence of five years, a fine of up to RM500,000, or both, for offences involving children under the age of 18.
Key changes in Section 211 include replacing the words "offensive content" with "indecent content, etc”, deleting the words "or other persons using a content application service" from Section 211(b)(1), and replacing the word "offensive" with "grossly offensive."
Meanwhile, Section 211(c) replaces the term "any person" with "content application service provider" and substituting the words "fifty thousand” to “one million”.
The Communications Ministry also said that last year, online crime cases surged to 35,368, resulting in losses exceeding RM1.5 billion. This affirmed the timely implementation of these amendments.
The ministry urged Malaysians to support these efforts and take necessary precautions to safeguard themselves and their families from online threats.- February 11, 2025