Not sure? DON’T SHARE!
Govt launches SEBENARNYA.MY portal to curb spread of false news
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CYBERJAYA: In an effort to address the dissemination of false news, the g o v e r n ment h a s launched SEBENARNYA.MY, an information verification portal. Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak said the portal, developed by the Malaysian Communications a nd Multimedia Commission (MCMC), is among initiatives undertaken by the government to curb the spread of false news, that has been rampant of late.
“Through the portal, the public will be able to verify the authenticity of news they receive either through social media, SMS, blogs or websites. They can also report dubious news items to have it verified by official channels or the relevant government agencies involved,” he said during the launch of the portal yesterday.
He added that all related information would be gathered, analysed, validated and uploaded on the portal for reference by the public regardless of t heir political background.
“There have been 4,333 complaints relating to social media abuse and out of
these, 36 were on the spread of false news.
“False news not only confuses but could also threaten security, prosperity and the well-being of the people and country.
“This does not only happen in Malaysia but also in the US, Indonesia and Europe,” he said.
Spreading false news is an offence under Section 233 of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission Act 1998 and those found guilty can be fined up to RM50,000 or jailed a maximum of one year, or both.
In highlighting the portal’s main message of “Not Sure, Don’t Share”, Salleh said: “Do not accept any news completely without verification.
“We don’t want the public to share news (just because) it was received from another group.”
Curbing the spread of false news should be a joint effort of the government and the people, he said.
Salleh added that the government had conducted various programmes and campaigns such as “Klik dengan Bijak” (Click Wisely) and “Semak Sebelum Sebar” (Check Before Disseminating) to curb the spread of false news.
“However, the ministry and MCMC is of the view that the programmes need to be accompanied by initiatives to enable the public to check and report on unverified news.”
Salleh said the launching of the portal was not to curtail freedom of expression.
“SEBENARNYA.MY is not just meant for political news. Any type of information received from social media, blogs and other sources can be checked, verified and shared.
“This portal was created not because of the general election and is not owned by the government alone. This portal is for the people. The Opposition can also use this portal to obtain valid news,” he said.