PARLIAMENT: Government to Detail Social Media Age Limit Regulations

Malaysia is introducing stricter measures to regulate age verification on social media platforms, aiming to prevent companies from manipulating the process. Minister of Communications Datuk Fahmi Fadzil announced that the government will require official identification, such as MyKad, birth certificates, or passports, for age verification, moving away from simple self-declarations.

These new regulations will also incorporate data protection requirements and information usage limitations. The government intends to enforce these rules through regulatory actions and penalties, including financial sanctions, for Licensed Service Providers who fail to comply with the Child Protection Code (CPC). This code, along with the Risk Mitigation Code (RMC), took effect on June 1st under the Online Safety Act 2025 (Act 866).

The primary goal is to create a safer online environment, especially for children, protecting them from online risks and harm. Social media service providers must implement child safety measures in their design and enhance age-appropriate protections for child users. Under the new code, users must be 16 years old to register for a social media account; individuals younger than 16 are prohibited from opening accounts until they reach the specified age.

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Besides official documents like MyKad, the CPC allows the use of other documents recognized by the Malaysian government, including equivalent records issued by competent authorities in other jurisdictions, so that access to online protection can be provided equitably to all children.

Fahmi clarified that the age verification is not intended to permanently ban children from social media but to delay account ownership until they are 16. At this age, they are considered to possess greater maturity for safe and responsible platform use. The CPC also allows for the use of other government-recognized documents from Malaysian authorities or equivalent records from other jurisdictions to ensure equitable access to online protection for all children.

Furthermore, social media service providers must ensure their age verification processes comply with personal data protection laws. This includes adhering to data minimization principles and purpose limitation, collecting only necessary data for age verification, and securely disposing of it once the purpose is fulfilled.

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The implementation of age verification is not intended to permanently ban children from using social media, but rather to postpone the ownership of social media accounts until they reach the age of 16 and have a more appropriate level of maturity to use the platform safely and responsibly.