Digital education key to Online Safety Act age verification rollout, says cyber group

KUALA LUMPUR, May 27 — The implementation of an age verification mechanism under the Online Safety Act 2025 (ONSA) must be supported by comprehensive digital education efforts to ensure users, especially young people, understand the risks and challenges in cyberspace.

Malaysia Cyber Consumer Association (MCCA) president Siraj Jalil said the association supports the government’s move to introduce the mechanism to prevent underage children from owning social media accounts, but its implementation must be accompanied by broader explanations and engagement sessions.

“We agree with the age verification mechanism because social media platforms have long set age guidelines, but there has never been a truly effective method to ensure that ages are not falsified.

“The government is introducing this method so that children under the age of 16 cannot own social media accounts,” he said while appearing as a guest on Bernama TV’s Ruang Bicara programme here last night. 

Siraj said the government should organise phased dialogue sessions across various levels of society to ensure the public understands the rationale behind the policy implementation and to avoid misunderstandings.

He said education on safe internet and social media usage should be instilled from an early stage because knowledge is the key factor in shaping responsible digital users.

“That educational mechanism is important so that when young people reach the permitted age to own social media accounts, they will not face culture shock and will be better prepared to use digital platforms safely,” he added.

Siraj also reminded parents to play their role as informal educators by improving their understanding of cybersecurity before guiding their children in the use of digital technology.

“Parental readiness is very important. If even basic safety practices are not applied, how can they protect their children on the internet? That is why understanding must be built, and the government needs to ensure its communication channels are improved,” he said.

Effective June 1, users of social media platforms will be required to upload official government-issued documents for age verification purposes following the implementation of two new codes under the ONSA.

The two codes introduced by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) are the Child Protection Code (CPC) and the Risk Mitigation Code (RMC), aimed at preventing individuals under the age of 16 from opening social media accounts. — Bernama