Parents need to ensure children under 13 do not own social media accounts - Fahmi

KUALA LUMPUR - The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) reminded parents to ensure that their children under 13 do not own any social media accounts.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said this was because the commission found that it was not appropriate for children under 13 to use any social media.

The unity government spokesman said that most social media platforms did not permit teens of such age to sign up for an account.

"To parents who are here tonight, I relay a warning from the MCMC, children under 13 are not permitted to own TikTok, Facebook, Instagram or any other social media account.

"Should there be such a case (of children under 13 having social media accounts), parents please inform me, the MCMC...we will shut down the account," he said during his speech at the Lembah Pantai Hari Raya Aidilfitri Open House 2024 at IWK Eco Park@Lembah Pantai here, last night.

Fahmi clarified that social media platforms currently leave account registration to users fully without any way of proving their age met the necessary requirements and his ministry has held a series of meetings with relevant parties, including Meta - owner of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp - and Telegram, to present their plans to tackle the ownership of social media accounts among children under 13.

"We looked at several matters from their side that they need to inform us beforehand. My hope is that by early may there will be an announcement on discussions with these social media platforms, especially regarding online safety for children," he said. - BERNAMA