Recently, we reported that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is considering taking action against Telegram, which may include blocking the platform. According to Zulkarnain Mohd Yasin, the chief compliance officer of MCMC, cyber crime activities on Telegram have significantly increased and now rank among the top five, whereas they were previously in the 11th position between 2019 and 2020.
The government is urging the messaging platform to come out and cooperate if they don’t want any actions to be taken against them.
Malay Mail reports that the Ministry of Communications and Digital (KKD) has called on Telegram to have a meeting with the MCMC promptly to prevent potential consequences regarding various cybersecurity issues.
Minister Fahmi Fadzil stated that despite the firm recommendations provided by the MCMC, the KKD has offered Telegram the chance to engage in a meeting. This opportunity was given because Telegram had reached out to him recently, prompting the KKD to provide a platform for discussion.
Fahmi emphasised that if Telegram is willing to sit down with the MCMC and Bukit Aman, they can effectively address concerns related to the proliferation of explicit content, drug sales, scams, and misinformation, which are prevalent on the platform.
A couples of days ago, Fahmi reportedly mentioned that the government would ensure that any actions taken against Telegram would have minimal impact on its users. The ministry is aware that Telegram is widely utilised, especially by specific communities such as schools and media practitioners, for transmitting videos and images.
