The implementation of the age verification mechanism under the Online Safety Act 2025 (Onsa) must be accompanied by comprehensive digital education efforts to help users, especially young people, better understand the risks and challenges of cyberspace.
Malaysia Cyber Consumer Association (MCCA) president Siraj Jalil said the association supports the government’s move to introduce the mechanism aimed at preventing underage children from owning social media accounts.
However, he stressed that the rollout should also include wider public awareness campaigns and engagement sessions to ensure the public fully understands the policy.
“We support the age verification mechanism because social media platforms have long imposed minimum age requirements, but there has never been an effective way to prevent users from falsifying their age,” he said during an appearance on Bernama TV’s Ruang Bicara programme.
He explained that the government’s objective is to stop children below the age of 16 from opening social media accounts.
Siraj also urged the government to conduct phased dialogue sessions across different segments of society to avoid confusion and improve public understanding of the new regulations.
According to him, digital literacy and safe internet practices should be introduced from an early age to help shape responsible online behaviour among young users.
“Education is crucial so that once young people reach the eligible age to own social media accounts, they will be more prepared and less likely to experience culture shock when using digital platforms,” he added.
He also reminded parents to strengthen their own understanding of cybersecurity so they can better guide and protect their children online.
“Parents must also be prepared. If basic online safety measures are not practised at home, it becomes difficult to safeguard children from internet threats,” he said.
Beginning June 1, social media users will be required to upload official government-issued identification documents for age verification purposes following the implementation of two new codes under Onsa.
The two codes introduced by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission are the Child Protection Code (CPC) and the Risk Mitigation Code (RMC), both aimed at preventing individuals under 16 from creating social media accounts.
