With Safer Internet Day (SID) 2026 just around the corner, the conversation surrounding our online safety is shifting from being vulnerable spectators to proactive guardians of our own digital world.
FOR most Malaysian families, the Internet is an invisible glue that holds our daily lives together.
We wake up to WhatsApp messages, manage our finances via banking apps, attend classes or meetings online and unwind on social media.
Yet, as our digital footprints grow, so do the shadows cast by those looking to exploit them.
While high-level policies like the newly enforced Online Safety Act (ONSA) 2025 are vital, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) emphasises that the strongest shield against digital threats isn’t found in a server room—it’s found at home.
A national issue
According to recent data from the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM), the scale of the online safety challenge is sobering, as Malaysians lost over RM2.7bil to cybercrime in 2025. These losses were driven largely by sophisticated telecommunications and e-commerce scams.
What’s more is that these aren’t just mere statistics, but hard-earned life savings vanished and trust broken.
The most alarming trend is the shift toward younger victims, as online threats now actively target and involve children, leaving youth trapped in a web of digital exploitation.
Cybercriminals are increasingly using children as “gateways”, often using threats or emotional manipulation to gain access to the family’s sensitive information.
A report by the Global Anti-Scam Alliance in 2025 revealed that 21% of Malaysian parents reported their children, aged 7 to 17, had been duped by online scams.
Most disturbing is the risk of exposure to child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Just last year, the integrated PDRM-MCMC Ops Pedo 2.0, carried out in September, placed a spotlight on the scale of the threat, seizing nearly 880,000 CSAM files.
This represents a staggering 22-fold increase from Ops Pedo 1.0 in December 2024, when 40,000 CSAM files were seized, highlighting the growing danger in the digital space.
Risk across generations
Internet and online safety affect us all, but the risks wear different masks depending on who is clicking.
- For children: Exposure to harmful content and cyberbullying remains a primary concern, especially with the alarming CSAM statistics and the rise of AI-generated explicit content in recent years.
- For working adults: AI-powered phishing and deepfake scams are the new frontier, as scammers now use voice-cloning and facial-alteration technology to impersonate friends or family to deceive victims.
- For seniors: Often targeted via love scams or fraudulent investment schemes, older adults are particularly vulnerable due to the digital literacy gap and their unfamiliarity with new technology.
While the threats are worrying, they also signify why everyday awareness at home could make a real difference.
First line of defence
Although the government has tightened the reins on social media giants, requiring platforms like TikTok, Meta, WhatsApp and Telegram to hold operating licenses, legislation alone cannot police every action.
MCMC stresses that digital literacy is the most effective way to protect ourselves and our family members from digital threats.
This goes beyond just knowing what an app is and how to use it, as it involves:
- Critical thinking: Questioning why you receive transaction authorisation codes (TACs) via suspicious links or messages.
- Open dialogue: Encouraging youth and children to speak up if they encounter something weird online, without fear of losing their device privileges.
- Technical hygiene: Using multi-factor authentication for devices and banking apps by regularly updating privacy settings like passwords.
Additionally, you can also take more proactive measures to guard your digital footprint by:
- Checking your settings: Review privacy permissions for apps and social media accounts.
- Verifying requests: If a friend or relative asks for money via a message out of the blue, call them directly to confirm.
- Reporting suspicious activity: If you think you’ve encountered a scam or come across harmful content, report it to MCMC or via the Cyber999 portal.
A call to action
In conjunction with the upcoming Safer Internet Day (SID) 2026 on Feb 8, the conversation surrounding our online safety is shifting from being vulnerable spectators to proactive guardians of our own digital world.
Themed, “Smart Technology, Safe Choices: Safe and Responsible Use of AI”, SID highlights the double-edged sword of modern technology.
The goal is to move internet safety from a technical problem to a shared responsibility, by raising awareness about the importance of safe, responsible and positive internet use, particularly among children and youth.
Just as we were taught to look both ways before crossing the street when we were young, we must now teach the next generation—and ourselves—to navigate the digital highway with caution.
The Internet has brought the world to our doorstep, and now, it is up to us to ensure that when we open the door, our families remain safe on the other side.
For more information, visit https://mcmc.gov.my/hki2026.
