PETALING JAYA: Online service providers could face fines of up to RM10mil if they fail to comply with new requirements to curb child sexual abuse material.
The new Risk Mitigation Code (RMC) and Child Protection Code (CPC) will be implemented from June 1 under the Online Safety Act 2025 (Onsa).
The introduction of the CPC, aimed at strengthening online protections for children, comes amid growing alarm over rising child sexual abuse material cases and mounting pressure on digital platforms to tackle harmful content more effectively.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) said online service providers will now have to implement stronger safeguards for children and stricter measures to tackle harmful content.
“The CPC and RMC constitute an important step in strengthening Malaysia’s approach to online safety.
“The implementation of these key obligations under Onsa also forms part of the government’s ongoing efforts to ensure a safer digital experience for children and families,” it said in a statement yesterday.
It added that the CPC focuses on ensuring a safer, more age-appropriate online experience for children, requiring service providers to embed “safety-by-design” principles into their platforms.
“Such measures also include safeguards to limit account registration and ownership by users under the age of 16.
“Under the CPC, platforms must also provide age-appropriate protections and restrictions on high-risk features, helping to reduce exposure to exploitative interactions and harmful content.”
The commission said the RMC requires service providers to implement proactive and systemic measures to mitigate the risk of harmful content.
These include mandatory risk assessments, stronger content governance, effective reporting and response mechanisms, advertiser verification measures and the labelling of manipulated content where appropriate.
While the codes will take effect from next month, MCMC said a reasonable grace period will be granted for service providers to effectively complete the verification process.
The MCMC added that the codes set clear expectations for service providers to take greater responsibility in addressing online harms within their services.
“The implementation approach under the codes remains outcome-based, allowing service providers the flexibility to adopt appropriate solutions that meet safety, privacy and legal requirements,” the commission said.
MCMC said the codes were published yesterday, following engagements with industry players, civil society organisations and relevant stakeholders, including a public consultation exercise held between Feb 12 and March 31.
