PETALING JAYA: A total of 713 pieces of deepfake and image-forgery content involving political party leaders were taken down by service providers between January 2025 and Sept 15 this year following requests from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
The Communications Ministry said the removals followed complaints, breaches of service providers’ community guidelines, and violations of applicable Malaysian laws.
In a written parliamentary reply to Datuk Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden (PN-Alor Setar), the ministry said AI misuse, including deepfakes, scams and identity forgery, was dealt with according to the nature and elements of each offence and the jurisdiction of the relevant ministry or enforcement agency.
READ MORE: MCMC removes 12,353 deepfakes since January
It said MCMC could take action against content containing obscene, indecent, false, threatening, grossly offensive or harmful elements under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (Act 588) or the Online Safety Act 2025 (Act 866).
The ministry stressed that enforcement action was not based on the political affiliation, position or background of the individuals involved.
“MCMC’s actions are based on legal provisions, the elements of the offence, facts and evidence, without taking into account the political ideology, position or background of the individuals involved,” it said.
It said, for example, Section 233 of Act 588 sets out the conduct and intent required before an act can be considered an offence, with amendments to the provision also setting out the elements of different types of content, including false, obscene, indecent, threatening and grossly offensive material.
For cases involving prosecution, the ministry said MCMC would refer the matter to the Attorney-General’s Chambers for assessment.
Prosecution would only proceed after written consent was obtained from the Public Prosecutor, while cases brought to court would be subject to judicial proceedings, with accused persons given the right to present their defence before a decision was made.
The ministry said the process provided a comprehensive regulatory framework to ensure enforcement action was carried out transparently, fairly and in accordance with the law.
It also said there were checks and balances to ensure MCMC could carry out its regulatory and enforcement functions independently and without external pressure.
Those dissatisfied with MCMC’s actions or decisions could appeal to the Appeal Tribunal established under Acts 588 and 866, while parties who remained dissatisfied could subsequently seek judicial review at the High Court.
The ministry said these mechanisms ensured regulatory and enforcement decisions were based on the law, facts and evidence, while remaining subject to appropriate review.
It said the government’s approach was intended to ensure that enforcement against deepfakes and other forms of AI misuse was applied consistently, regardless of the political standing of the individuals affected.
