Facebook accounted for the largest share of gambling and scam content referred for removal in Malaysia from Jan 1 to Aug 17, says Fahmi Fadzil.
PUTRAJAYA: Facebook accounted for the largest share of online gambling and scam content referred for removal by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) between Jan 1 and Aug 17, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said today.
Fahmi said Facebook accounted for 78% of online gambling-related content and 53% of scam content referred to platforms for removal during the period.
“Perhaps we should have an award every year for the platform that commits the most ‘sins’ against Malaysians — for scams, Facebook,” he said sarcastically.
He was speaking at a memorandum of understanding (MoU) exchange ceremony between the Immigration Department and MCMC, which was also attended by Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution.
Fahmi said a total of 470,593 pieces of harmful content had been identified and referred for removal during the period, with platforms complying with 93%, or 436,661 cases.
For gambling-related content, YouTube accounted for 18%, followed by TikTok at 4%.
For scam content, TikTok accounted for 39%, followed by Threads at 5%.
Fahmi said 64% of the total content referred for removal involved gambling, while 27% involved scams.
He said social media platforms should take proactive measures to detect, block and remove harmful content instead of waiting for authorities or users to flag it.
“Every platform must act proactively to detect, block and remove harmful content that clearly violates their guidelines and terms of use,” he said.
Fahmi also revealed that he personally monitored Facebook posts and forwarded suspected harmful content to Saifuddin and MCMC for further action.
“I myself, every morning after Subuh, collect posts on Facebook before they are reported by others.
“I personally send them to the MCMC team to be examined and for removal requests to be submitted,” he said.
He said delays in removing harmful content allowed it to continue spreading and increased the risks posed to society.
Fahmi said the issue was particularly concerning given that online scams had caused RM958 million in losses between January and July this year, compared with RM2.9 billion throughout 2025.
He said the figures underscored the need for greater cooperation between MCMC and the Immigration Department to combat cross-border crime involving both physical and digital networks.
