KUALA LUMPUR: Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil today criticised Meta for failing to take action against Facebook groups linked to paedophilia and scams.
Fahmi said the ministry had received reports about Facebook groups harbouring criminal elements.
He said the ministry had become frustrated with Meta's apparent inaction, which had led to these groups being active for several years.
"Some of these groups have hundreds of members, while others have tens of thousands, and they have been operating for years.
"We've been in talks with Meta since early this year. I even travelled to Singapore to discuss this with them, but they keep offering excuses.
"This delay is unacceptable when public safety is at stake."
He said this after attending the Madani Deepavali open house at Sentul Depot here.
Fahmi said the safety of Malaysians, especially children, could not be compromised.
He warned Meta that Malaysia could not afford to tolerate further delays in addressing these groups.
"Meta is asking for more time, but we cannot afford to give more time to scammers and paedophilia groups.
"For Meta to say we've never discussed these issues is untrue.
"We've done everything we can to push for swift action, but they continue to provide reasons for not addressing it."
It was reported that the police were investigating allegations of child grooming in a private Facebook group that shared pictures of schoolgirls wearing baju kurung.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission was also taking action against the group.
In a reply to an X user who had highlighted the group and asked for action to be taken against it, MCMC said it had taken note of the posting and was taking action.
It is understood that the group had more than 6,100 members.