2,000 fake social media accounts blocked

> MCMC’s action to curb spread of unverified news

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has blocked or shut down more than 2,000 fake social media accounts since January, the Dewan Rakyat heard, yesterday.

Its minister, Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak, said MCMC had reported these accounts to social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter due to violating the terms and conditions set by the respective providers.

“Almost 75% of the 2,000 fake accounts have been subjected to further action while the rest are under investigation,” he said.

Salleh was responding to a question from Datuk Mohd Fasiah Mohd Fakeh (BN - Sabak Bernam) on the number of fake accounts that have been identified and the actions taken to curb the spread of fake news.

Between January and June, Salleh said the MCMC had investigated 221 cases involving social media platforms, websites, and blogs.

From this amount, 19 cases resulted in fines while five cases were taken to court with successful convictions.

He also said the majority of Malaysians subscribe highly to Facebook and WhatsApp, with over 90% locals having installed the instant messaging service on their smartphones.

In response to a supplementary question from Idris Ahmad (PAS- Bukit Gantang), he advised the people to always check the authenticity of news and information received on social media platforms before sharing them.

“When we receive news and information via WhatsApp the problem is that we make it a habit to forward or share them with the various groups we belong to.

“Check the authenticity of the news first. This applies not just to news originating from the government, but also from the Opposition,” he added.