The Malaysian government has ramped up efforts to remove pornographic content from social media and block explicit websites while also pressuring major tech companies to comply with stricter content regulations.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil told Malaysia’s Dewan Rakyat (lower house of parliament) that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has removed:

✔ 1,993 pornographic posts and advertisements from social media (2022 – Feb. 2025).
✔ 3,670 websites blocked for showing “inappropriate content.”

Fahmi emphasized that social media platforms have a duty of care to prevent the spread of explicit or indecent material and confirmed that Malaysia has been working with major tech firms, including Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter), to remove adult content from the platform within the country.

“Social media platforms have a duty of care to avoid putting up inappropriate content and that is why we need to work with them,” Fahmi said in Parliament.

The government’s latest push against online pornography comes in the wake of Malaysia’s controversial Online Safety Bill 2024, which was recently passed and grants authorities sweeping powers to regulate online content.

Key provisions of the bill include:

✔ Requiring social media and messaging platforms with over 8 million users to register as application service providers and comply with government censorship rules.
✔ Forcing companies like Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), ByteDance (TikTok), and Tencent (WeChat) to remove “harmful content,” including anything deemed obscene or indecent.
✔ Giving law enforcement officials broad search and seizure powers—without a warrant—including access to sensitive user data.

The bill has sparked concerns among civil rights groups and free speech advocates, who warn that the vague definitions of “harmful content” could lead to overreach.

Malaysia has long enforced strict obscenity laws, and the government has escalated its crackdown on digital content creators who distribute adult material.

In Malaysia, obscenity laws are primarily governed by the Penal Code, which criminalizes various activities related to obscene materials. Section 292 of the Penal Code prohibits the sale, distribution, public exhibition, and possession of obscene books, pamphlets, papers, drawings, paintings, representations, figures, or any other obscene objects. Violations of this section can result in imprisonment for up to three years, a fine, or both.

✔ In recent years, authorities have arrested multiple content creators under anti-obscenity laws.
✔ One activist was charged for posting a collage of vulvas on Twitter as part of a feminist campaign.
✔ A male content creator and his two girlfriends were arrested for “offering sexual services” by selling adult videos online.

With the new Online Safety Bill, tech companies operating in Malaysia must now comply with stricter regulations or risk legal consequences and potential platform restrictions.

Due to the 8 million user threshold, the bill is expected to impact fewer than a dozen companies but includes some of the biggest global social media and messaging platforms.

✔ Tencent (WeChat)
✔ ByteDance (TikTok)
✔ Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp)

“This is a serious step toward internet regulation that could impact both online freedoms and business operations in Malaysia,” said a legal expert monitoring the developments.

The Malaysian government justifies these measures as necessary for protecting children and society from explicit content, but critics argue that the vague definitions of “harmful content” could lead to:

✔ Censorship of sex education and LGBTQ+ content.
✔ Criminalization of online creators for consensual adult content.
✔ Overreach into broader digital speech and privacy violations.