KUALA LUMPUR: THE growing accessibility of triple X-rated pornography, especially to the young and impressionable, has prompted the country’s cyber authorities to step in to rein in the problem.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has roped in most Internet service providers (ISPs)to help block porn websites, including popular ones that offer hard core pornographic materials for free.
It is understood that the commission had also acted in response to an increasing number of complaints from parents worried that their children were being exposed to uncensored, sexually explicit materials on the Internet.
It is also understood that the move to rope in ISPs was because parental control could only go so far in protecting the children.
“With desktops at home, parents can key in a list of keywords and phrases in the hopes of filtering out pornographic sites. But safeguarding children from illicit content is getting more challenging each day.
“And then there are the pornographic website pop-ups to contend with, which often appear innocuous and use non-explicit language and cartoon characters and child icons.
“With smartphones, the problem has worsened. Not only are sexual activities of every type placed at their fingertips, but young children especially, could easily be lured into cyber chats and cybersex with ‘live’ feeds,” an industry expert told the New Straits Times, in response to the MCMC’s move to block porn sites.
The commission is now in the midst of identifying and tracing more of such websites. MCMC strategic communication senior director Sheikh Raffie Abd Rahman said the commission had been working continuously with police to limit access to any Internet content that breached the country’s laws.
“What we do in cases like this is, we send a request to the service provider to limit access to the site,” he said.
He said aside from red flagging such sites, the commission organised advocacy programmes to engage the public in the battle against indecent sites on the World Wide Web.
“Parents play a huge role in monitoring their children’s use of the Internet.
“At the same time, we need the public to practise self-censorship, self-discipline and self-education when surfing the Internet.” Sheikh Raffie told the NST that in 2013 alone, MCMC blocked more than 200 porn websites.
Industry insiders told the NST that each year, the MCMC blocked some 4,000 websites. Asked if Malaysia was reneging on the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) Bill of Guarantee (BoG), particularly point seven, which guarantees no Internet censorship, the insiders said the country’s laws clearly superseded an undertaking, such as the BoG.
“The public has no problem when the authorities move in to block scam websites that swindle their money.
“In fact, the commission has acted against many such websites that attempt to con the public into parting with their money.
“As such, there should not be an issue with the authorities act against websites offering illicit contents,” one industry expert said.
It is underlined in the BoG that the incentives, rights and privileges granted are subjected to relevant laws and regulations.
The aim of the no-Internet-censorship guarantee was to realise Malaysia’s vision to be a major global ICT hub.
The bill also says that while the government will not censor the Internet, it does not mean that any person may disseminate illegal content with impunity and without regard for the law.
“To the extent that any act is illegal in the physical world, it will similarly be outlawed in cyberspace.
“Hence, laws prohibiting dissemination of, for example, indecent, obscene or other illegal materials will continue to apply.
“In this regard, relevant ministries and agencies will continue to take appropriate action and enforce those laws that are under their respective purview,” the BoG reads.
Former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had, in recent years, asked the authorities to impose some form of control to shield youth from online pornography.
Dr Mahathir had admitted that while he had promised non-censorship of the Internet under BoG over a decade ago, some form of code of ethics to prevent pornography from being easily accessible must be put in place. This, he had said, was because sexually graphic sites were “negatively stimulating the minds” of the young and had led to a rise in violent sex crimes.
The guarantee against Internet censorship, he had said, was based on the advice of an international panel of advisers during the setting up of the MSC.
“At the time, I agreed as I did not fully comprehend how much information could pass through the Internet.
“Not knowing the power of the Internet, I (speaking then as prime minister) promised that we would not censor it. But today, I have changed my mind,” he had said.
Malaysians trying to access pornographic websites through their smartphones will find a notification which reads: “This website is not available in Malaysia as it violates the national law”.
A link attached will let them know that accessing it would violate Sections 211 or 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1988, which deal with illicit contents.
Offenders are liable, upon conviction, to a fine not exceeding RM50,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or both, and shall also be liable to a further fine of RM1,000 for every day the offence is continued after conviction.