CYBERJAYA: WhatsApp users can now stop fake news from spreading by using a new chatbot to verify text messages before forwarding them, says Fahmi Fadzil.
The Communications Minister said that the chatbot - Aifa (Artificial Intelligence Fact-Check Assistant) would be able to verify text messages in four main languages - English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil.
Fahmi said this at Aifa's launch on Tuesday (Jan 28) here at the Malaysian Multimedia and Communications Commission (MCMC) headquarters.
“From 2020 to Jan 27, 2025, a total of 25,114 fake news items have been removed.
“We found that as of late, the situation has worsened whereby criminals are widely using fake news and deep fakes.
“Licensing of social media platforms is only a part of the government's initiatives. The King has agreed to the amendments to the MCMC Act to curb porn, cyberbullying and scams," he said.
Fahmi said that Aifa on WhatsApp would keep a check on messages which are forwarded without verifying.
“We have among the fastest Internet speeds in South-East Asia, but the fake news is quicker.
“A few weeks ago, there was news that the International Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz had jumped parties from Umno to PKR, which was not true and it went viral.
"Then, we have the one where Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh was alleged to be the daughter of the founder of the YTL Corporation Bhd. Another was the fake news of 1.2 million China nationals being in the country,” said Fahmi.
He said that the MCMC has collaborated with strategic partners to develop and provide chatbot services on WhatsApp and the Sebenarnya.my portal.
“The chatbot initiative led by MCMC will serve as a platform to help users verify the accuracy of information spread through the application.
“Aifawould help the public quickly and easily verify and obtain accurate information, accelerate the response to false information online and strengthen the role of Sebenarnya.my in combating the spread of fake news in Malaysia,” said Fahmi.
He explained that Aifa uses algorithms and machine learning to match information with reliable sources, and then quickly provides users with accurate and verified information.
“Currently, Aifa only accepts input in text format. In the future, Aifa will be capable of accepting input in various formats,” said Fahmi.
According to MCMC data, the amount of fake news detected after fact-checking throughout the past year reached nearly 20,000.
“In 2024, MCMC requested the removal of 19,546 fake news items from various online platforms. Of that number, 17,245 pieces of content were removed after being verified as fake news by all the involved platforms. As of January 27, MCMC has requested the removal of 1,575 fake news items. Of these, 1,233 fake news pieces were removed by the respective platforms,” said Fahmi.
