118 sex services websites blocked

MORE than 100 websites offering prostitution services have been blocked as of Nov 15, the Dewan Rakyat was told.

Deputy Communications and Digital Minister Teo Nie Ching said 118 sites were blocked by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) following requests by the police.

Teo said the police had jurisdiction over the above, while MCMC’s role was to provide technical assistance for investigations, carry out a digital forensic analysis and remove content when requested by the police.

She added that 76 posts offering sex services had been taken down across social media platforms as of Nov 15.

“The posts had violated community guidelines and also went against the country’s laws.

“MCMC will continue taking the necessary measures in tandem with enforcement agencies such as the police, Internet service providers, and social media platform operators to overcome this issue,” she said during a question and answer session yesterday.

Teo was responding to a question by Zulkifli Ismail (PN-Jasin), who asked the ministry about its measures in curbing the spread of prostitution activities on the social media platform X, previously known as Twitter.

Zulkifli also voiced concern over individuals who are offering the said services through their personal social media accounts.

He said the individuals could open new accounts if their old ones were blocked.

To this, Teo said one of the challenges faced was how such content could be uploaded to private groups on platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram.

“The content is not uploaded to an open platform, but rather selected groups.

“The police are also reliant on public reports to take action,” said the Kulai MP, who added the best course of action was for the public to lodge police reports if they came across lewd or questionable content on social media.

She stressed that MCMC is not the “Internet police” in this context, but will act upon requests by enforcement agencies.

“Lodge a police report if you come across such content, so that the police can inform us. MCMC can then remove the content and block the site,” Teo said.