Malaysia launched new restrictions Monday that block millions of children under 16 from having social media accounts, becoming part of a worldwide movement to strengthen digital safety measures for young internet users.
The new regulations mandate that social media companies install age-verification technology and prevent users younger than 16 from setting up accounts. The restrictions target platforms with a minimum of 8 million users, covering Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
Social media companies that don’t follow the new rules face financial penalties reaching 10 million ringgit ($2.5 million). However, parents won’t face punishment if their children find ways around the restrictions.
Officials stated the new policies aim to shield children from dangerous content, cyberbullying and platform designs that promote addictive usage patterns.
Several nations including Australia, Brazil and Indonesia have either launched or announced age-related limitations for children’s social media access. Additional countries such as Britain, France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea are researching or creating comparable strategies.
Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Commission explained the regulations don’t seek to block children’s internet or digital technology access. The agency instead established standards for service providers to tackle online dangers and implement appropriate safety measures for different age groups.
“These measures help strengthen the protection of children in the online environment, while providing added reassurance to parents in navigating increasingly complex digital risks,” the regulator said in a statement last month.
Social media companies must introduce safety-focused design elements, including safeguards against manipulative features that promote compulsive behavior, and take steps to remove underage accounts and harmful material.
Technology firms haven’t yet explained their plans for meeting Malaysia’s new standards.
The regulatory agency announced it will provide a transition period for platforms to finish installing age-verification technology.
Clara Koh, Meta’s director of public policy for Southeast Asia, had cautioned in April that Malaysia’s blanket under-16 ban could backfire by driving teenagers away from protected apps and into unregulated corners of the internet.
She said Meta has launched “teen accounts” for those under 18 that limits contact, screen time and exposure to inappropriate content.
Malaysia’s new restrictions emerge as governments worldwide face mounting pressure to tackle worries about social media’s effects on children’s mental health and digital safety.
In March, a U.S. jury ordered Meta and YouTube to pay millions of dollars in damages in a case alleging that platform design features contributed to harm suffered by a young user.
While many parents support the move, Malaysia’s decision has sparked concerns about data privacy protection.
“It is very much following the trend but in a way that is raising alarms due to requiring a government ID for age verification,” said Benjamin Loh, social science lecturer at Monash University in Malaysia.
Loh said experiences elsewhere suggest age-based restrictions have yet to prove consistently effective. Without parent penalties, he said families can easily bypass the law by creating accounts for their children.
“This is a major gap that unless regulators are willing to fix, will result in the law having little effect in stopping children from using social media,” he added.
