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SHAH ALAM – Malaysia's plan to establish a Cyber Force as the fourth branch of the Malaysian Armed Forces, alongside police warnings that extremist groups are recruiting through online gaming platforms, reflects a broader shift in the country's national security landscape.
According to cybersecurity experts, cyber defence, cognitive warfare, online radicalisation and data protection have become increasingly interconnected challenges.
International Islamic University Malaysia Emeritus Professor Datuk Dr Mohamed Ridza Wahiddin said although the Defence Ministry's proposal and the police's concerns appear to be separate developments, they are in fact different aspects of the same converging digital threat environment.
"Although the Defence Ministry’s plan to establish a cyber force and police warnings about extremist recruitment through online games are different developments, they reflect the same broader national security challenge.
"Malaysia is facing a converging threat environment in which military cyber readiness, online radicalisation, data breaches and information warfare increasingly reinforce one another.
"The growing emphasis on cyberspace reflects recognition that the digital domain has become a core battleground, particularly as authorities report extremist groups exploiting gaming platforms such as Roblox for recruitment," he said in an interview with Sinar Daily.
Ridza said the proposed Cyber Force reflects an expansion of Malaysia’s defence priorities beyond conventional military threats, signalling a broader shift towards protecting the country from cyberattacks and perception-based operations.
Extremist recruitment through online games, while occurring through a different channel, should be viewed as part of the same digital ecosystem, he said.
He said hostile actors exploit online platforms, weak identity controls and information gaps to influence and target individuals, making these developments interconnected aspects of a broader struggle over digital space, public trust and influence.
Ridza added that gaming platforms have become increasingly attractive to extremist recruiters because their communication features are more difficult to monitor.
"Gaming platforms have become increasingly attractive to extremist groups because they provide richer communication features, including real-time text and voice chat, avatars, private groups and cross-platform interaction.
"Young users also tend to spend extended periods in these relatively unsupervised social environments.
"Recruiters are able to begin with seemingly harmless conversations before gradually moving to private messaging and ideological grooming, making such activities more difficult to detect than traditional propaganda.
"These platforms also allow recruiters to identify users who appear isolated, curious, angry or otherwise socially vulnerable," he said.
He said Malaysia is particularly vulnerable to cognitive warfare and misinformation due to its high level of digital connectivity and dependence.
Ridza said such campaigns are most effective in societies where public attention is fragmented and where gaps exist between technical agencies, law enforcement, platform governance and public awareness.
"Public perception has now become part of the national security landscape, making influence operations a strategic concern rather than a secondary issue.
"Both extremist organisations and hostile foreign actors stand to benefit from increasing social polarisation, declining trust in institutions and the rapid spread of emotionally charged narratives.
"Cybersecurity weaknesses can also indirectly assist extremist activities. Personal data leaks may facilitate targeting, doxxing, impersonation, social engineering and profiling of individuals who are more susceptible to manipulation or coercion.
"Compromised personal information can also help propagandists tailor messages to specific communities.
"More broadly, a weak cybersecurity ecosystem reduces the effort required to identify networks, map relationships and amplify disinformation through compromised accounts or stolen contact lists," he said..
Ridza called for a coordinated national response involving families, schools, industry and the government to address the issue.
He said parents should monitor not only their children's screen time but also their online behaviour, contacts and any sudden secrecy surrounding gaming or messaging activities.
Schools, meanwhile, should treat digital literacy, emotional resilience and awareness of the warning signs of online grooming as core safeguarding responsibilities rather than optional programmes.
He also urged gaming companies to strengthen age verification, chat moderation, reporting mechanisms and escalation procedures, noting that extremist recruitment often begins through seemingly ordinary peer interactions.
“At the national level, stronger coordination is needed among defence agencies, police, cybersecurity authorities, education institutions and social welfare agencies because the challenge cuts across all of their responsibilities.
"Malaysia's priority should therefore be to strengthen not only its cyber defence capabilities but also the human dimension of digital security through more effective prevention systems.
"More broadly, countries face the challenge of governing powerful emerging technologies that are transforming society, including information technology and artificial intelligence. Effective legal and administrative frameworks must evolve alongside these technologies.
"In this regard, the Academy of Sciences Malaysia is preparing a position paper examining recent developments in hybrid warfare and their relationship with emerging technologies," he said.
Cybersecurity practitioner and Adjunct Practice Professor at UNIMY Murugason R Thangaratnam said Malaysia should view recent developments as part of a broader national security challenge rather than as isolated incidents.
He said the government's plan to establish a Cyber Force as the fourth branch of the Malaysian Armed Forces, together with police warnings that extremist groups are recruiting through online platforms and games such as Roblox, reflects wider threats involving cyber defence, youth radicalisation, data exploitation and cognitive warfare.
He added that warfare has evolved beyond attacks on digital infrastructure to also include efforts to influence public behaviour and perceptions.
"Cybersecurity has traditionally been associated with protecting networks, critical infrastructure and digital services from hacking and disruption. However, modern conflict increasingly extends beyond technical attacks to shaping narratives, influencing behaviour and exploiting emotions.
"The decision to establish a dedicated Cyber Force recognises cyberspace as a new domain of warfare, while extremist recruitment through gaming platforms demonstrates that this same digital space is already being used to target Malaysia’s youth," he said.
Murugason noted that while extremist groups previously relied on social media and encrypted messaging platforms during the height of the ISIS recruitment between 2014 and 2017, gaming platforms had now become an alternative avenue for ideological grooming.
He stressed that data breaches should also be regarded as national security threats rather than solely consumer protection issues.
“Compromised personal information, including contact details, behavioural patterns and financial data, can help hostile actors identify vulnerable individuals and tailor recruitment efforts with greater precision.
"Malaysia should therefore stop treating data protection, cybercrime and counter-extremism as separate policy areas, recognising that protecting personal data is also a frontline defence against manipulation, influence operations and targeted radicalisation," he said.
Murugason said Malaysia should adopt a broader national approach by integrating military cyber capabilities with stronger civilian safeguards.
He said the establishment of a Cyber Force marks a pivotal moment, signalling that digital security is now a matter of national security.
However, he warned that without equal attention to issues such as youth radicalisation, cognitive warfare and data exploitation, Malaysia risks strengthening its digital defences while leaving vulnerable groups exposed.
"The way forward is to broaden the national conversation from cybersecurity to digital resilience by integrating military cyber capabilities with stronger data protection, child-centred online safety, platform accountability and coordinated measures to counter cognitive warfare.
"Such an approach would better align with the Hanruh concept by protecting not only critical infrastructure but also the people who depend on it," he said.
