A WANITA MCA leader has expressed hope that the tabling of the Cybercrime Bill next month will tackle the rise of sexual crimes in Malaysia, in particular to curb the circulation of underaged lewd content.
However, its chairperson Datuk Wong You Fong stressed laws alone do not suffice if the nation does not also educate children about the dangers of creating and selling such content in the first place.
“Child activist Firdaus Ashaj has warned that youths producing and selling sexually explicit material often go undetected, as payment channels make it difficult to trace what the money is for,” Wong said.
“There have already been reports of minors receiving money from adults in exchange for explicit images or videos. Coercion and manipulation may play a role, and it is crucial to address these problems at their root causes.”
Wong was responding to recent reports of a 12-year-old girl who had allegedly created a website and conspired with four friends to sell explicit images of themselves on social media.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail told the Dewan Rakyat on Aug 19 that the group had a WhatsApp group with 762 members and each child had taken picures of parts of their body and sold them online.
Addressing this matter, Wong said the reasons why underaged children or teenagers resort to selling explicit content must be specifically identified and targeted.
“Poverty and financial hardship may push them into these situations, but exploitation by manipulative adults cannot be ignored,” she said.
“If financial need is the main factor, young people must be guided towards safer alternatives, supported through community initiatives and government subsidies.”
Wong said at the same time, parents and relatives have a duty to protect their children from predators with malicious intent.
She noted that before policies and safeguards for e-wallet transactions are introduced, parents must be the first line of defence.
“Protecting our youth must begin in the family. Parents, educators, communities, and policymakers must work together to ensure children are safe in the digital age,” she remarked.
“With youths now gaining access to the internet at increasingly earlier stages of life, cybersecurity must strike a careful balance. It should shield them from harmful and explicit content while still allowing spaces for healthy social relationships.”
According to Wong, total restriction is neither practical nor sustainable, but leaving them exposed places them at risk of harm that can last a lifetime.
“We must build an online environment where young people can grow and learn without the threat of sexual exploitation destroying their futures,” she added. ‒ Sept 10, 2025
Main image: Pexels/Jakub Zerdzicki
