Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil said Telegram has assured that it remains committed and ready to form a close working relationship with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM). The cooperation with Telegram is aimed at curbing criminal activities on the instant messaging platform. Prior to this, Telegram snubbed the minister’s request for cooperation saying that it refuses to participate in any form of political censorship.
The Ministry had an hour-long meeting with Telegram at Bukit Aman today which was also attended by MCMC Chairman Tan Sri Salim Fateh Din and the Inspector General of the Royal Malaysia Police Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani. Fahmi said he has highlighted the severe criminal activities on Telegram such as investment scams, paedophilia, pornography and other activities. The Minister said he has delivered a stern view on the importance of any instant messaging and social media platform to comply and respect Malaysian laws and regulations.
Pihak Telegram menyatakan komitmen dan bersedia menjalinkan hubungan kerja yang lebih erat dengan SKMM dan PDRM.
— Fahmi Fadzil 🇲🇾 (@fahmi_fadzil) June 19, 2023
Insya-Allah, pertemuan hari ini adalah permulaan yang baik dalam kerjasama rentas agensi bagi memastikan Telegram akan lebih selamat untuk digunakan. pic.twitter.com/4ZxTmqYLMO
Fahmi highlighted that Malaysians have incurred losses exceeding RM45 million due to scam activities on Telegram between January 2020 and May 2023. He said the government will not remain silent and allow such criminals to hide behind fake identities. Fahmi hopes that the meeting held today marks a positive step towards cross-agency cooperation to ensure Telegram is safe to use.
As highlighted previously, there’s a need to update existing laws and regulations to act on scams and criminal activities, and to hold platforms accountable for allowing scam activities on their platform. The MCMC has said before that its power to act on social media scams is limited as existing policies are ineffective. Last month, the MCMC Chairman said it is reviewing the current self-regulatory framework as there’s an increasing level of content being exploited by criminals, while over-the-top (OTT) applications and social media platforms have not been effective in self-regulating the use of their platforms in line with Malaysia’s laws and national interest. The MCMC said stricter regulatory oversight and intervention by the regulator are needed to protect the public interest and users.
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