Malaysian Communications Minister Fahmi Fadil said on Sunday that his country will enhance the online safety of minors through new verification rules, according to Bloomberg.
He added: "We hope that by next year, social media platforms will comply with the government's decision."
The minister explained that Malaysia will follow Australia's experience in implementing a ban on the use of social media for children under 16, which will begin on December 10.
In October, Malaysia decided to raise the minimum age for social media users from 13 to 16 years old.
Fahmy confirmed that this step is in line with the Internet Safety Law, which will come into effect on January 1st.
It is worth noting that Australia recently adopted a law prohibiting the use of social networks by children under the age of 16, and the Australian Prime Minister indicated that the authorities will ask technology companies and social media management to take reasonable steps to prevent users under the aforementioned age from creating accounts and pages.
