Online Safety Act: Operators can delete social media accounts of children under 16, says Nancy

KUCHING (Jan 3): Digital platform operators have the right to delete social media accounts belonging to children aged 16 and below under the Online Safety Act (Onsa) 2025, which came into force on Jan 1, said Minister of Women, Family and Community Development Dato Sri Nancy Shukri.

She noted that while she was not familiar with the technical details of how the law is enforced, its intent is clear: placing responsibility on platform operators to safeguard children online.

“Yes, but I wouldn’t know the technical part of how this is carried out, but what is required is for operators to take responsibility for children’s involvement in the use of social media,” she told reporters during a press conference here.

Nancy was responding to a question on whether the Act allows operators to delete accounts belonging to children aged 16 and below.

She said the law assigns primary responsibility to platform operators to monitor user accounts and ensure compliance with age restrictions.

“It is a fair law. It is more about assigning responsibility to operators so that they must monitor whether an account belongs to a child or not, because those aged 16 and below are not allowed.

“Therefore, the operator must be responsible,” she said.

The minister stressed that Malaysia could no longer overlook online safety risks affecting minors.

“We cannot afford to allow this to continue in the country. After what has happened, there is now a law, and it directly involves operators,” she said, adding that parents also play an important role in ensuring children’s safety online.

Nancy also said that digital platform operators have engaged with relevant ministers to clarify their responsibilities and the implementation of the Act.

“I was informed that the operators have met with the relevant ministers to explain their role and how the Act will be implemented,” she said.

The Online Safety Act 2025 aims to strengthen accountability among online service providers, particularly regarding underage users and harmful online content.