‘Fenced Internet’ Expanded to Public Premises and Private Higher Education Institutions in Selangor

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), in collaboration with the Selangor government, plans to expand the ‘Fenced Internet’ service to public premises and private higher education institutions (IPTS).

Selangor State Executive Councillor for Islamic Affairs and Innovation Culture, Fahmi Ngah, said the move follows the success of a pilot project implemented at mosques across the state to curb the spread of harmful and inappropriate online content.

He said the content-filtering approach is important to ensure digital access is not misused during key activities such as prayer times or learning sessions.

“At mosques, we installed a filtering system to prevent children from playing online games during prayer times. The same approach will be extended to private higher education institutions and related public housing premises,” he said after officiating the Petaling Jaya District Safe Internet Campaign Community Carnival 2026 at Kampung Lindungan today.

Commenting on cyber threats, Fahmi said 35,073 online scam cases were recorded as of last June, involving losses amounting to RM951.7 million, with investment scams accounting for RM413.8 million of the total.

“These losses, which are close to RM1 billion, involve the public’s savings. Therefore, the public should practise the concept of tabayyun, or careful verification, through the principle of ‘Verify Before You Click, Think Before You Share’,” he said.

He also proposed the use of artificial intelligence (AI) by authorities to automatically filter keywords and fake accounts in order to combat cyberbullying and extremist content without having to wait for public complaints.

BERNAMA