KUALA LUMPUR – The top management of TikTok has been called to Bukit Aman on Thursday (September 4) following concerns over the platform’s slow response to police investigations into cybercrime and the spread of false information, Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil said.
He highlighted a recent incident involving a “fake doctor”, where TikTok’s delay in providing information to the Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) forced him to personally reach out to the company’s chief executive officer, Shou Zi Chew, Bernama reported.
“TikTok was very slow in providing information to PDRM, to the point that I had to call TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew to inform him, ‘this is a crime that’s being committed and your organisation is very slow’,” Fahmi said after the AI Grand Prix Conference 2025 today.
“We cannot allow such an attitude, and insya-Allah, there will be a meeting at Bukit Aman attended by the Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Mohd Khalid Ismail and Attorney General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki,” he added.
Fahmi said Meta, the parent company of Facebook, would also be summoned over similar concerns, citing cases of paedophilia, school gangs and other harmful content spreading through its platforms.
“We see these platforms are not taking the matter seriously, so the dialogue process will continue, and we will stress that Malaysian law applies to them and they must comply. We will summon every platform,” he stressed.
The minister said that after TikTok, other social media companies will also face meetings with authorities to ensure compliance with Malaysian law and accountability in curbing criminal content online.
During a dialogue session titled Let’s Talk AI Revolution at the same conference, Fahmi revealed that the government is considering mandatory identity verification for online sales and advertisements to prevent misuse of fake accounts linked to scams, gambling promotions and deepfake content.
“Many crimes on social media are carried out by perpetrators hiding behind fake accounts. Many are deepfake accounts, gambling ads, scams and paedophilia — all fake accounts.
“I see there may be a need for the government to adopt a policy that if you want to sell goods online, there must be identity verification on the platform. If you want to place an ad on Facebook, there must be real details — something Facebook has refused to do,” he said, noting that Singapore has already implemented such a measure.
Separately, Fahmi said the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on the Safe and Responsible Use of Social Media Platforms for Asean would be formally adopted at the 47th Asean Summit in October.
The AI Grand Prix Conference 2025, organised by the Tun Abdul Razak Broadcasting and Information Institute (IPPTAR), opened today and runs for two days.
The event brings together academics, policymakers, industry players and creative professionals to explore artificial intelligence’s role in strengthening Malaysia’s media, communication and digital ecosystem. – September 2, 2025