Malaysia orders TikTok to address ‘defamatory’ content about king

Watchdog instructs social media giant to strengthen moderation following circulation of ‘grossly offensive’ content.Malaysia’s internet watchdog has ordered TikTok to take action against “offensive and defamatory” content about the country’s monarchy.The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) said on Thursday that it had instructed the video-sharing platform to take “immediate remedial measures” in response to an account purporting to be linked to King Sultan Ibrahim.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4US says it has not changed its stance on sanctioning Francesca Albaneselist 2 of 4At least 16 people killed in two attacks in northern Honduraslist 3 of 4Over 2,000 gather in San Diego to mourn three men killed in mosque attacklist 4 of 4US Senate pushes back against Trump’s $1.8bn ‘anti-weaponisation’ fundend of listThe MCMC said its order requires the social media company to strengthen its moderation policies and provide a “formal explanation” for its failure to block the “grossly offensive, false, menacing and insulting” content, including AI-generated videos and manipulated images.The regulator said it takes a “serious view” of online platforms being used to disseminate content that is false or “detrimental to public order”, particularly as it relates to the monarchy.It added that it issued the order after finding TikTok’s response to previous notifications to be “unsatisfactory”.TikTok, founded by Chinese tech company ByteDance, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.“MCMC will continue to take firm and proportionate action where necessary to ensure digital platforms operating in Malaysia uphold their responsibilities in maintaining a safe, secure and respectful online environment,” the watchdog said in a statement.Malaysia, a constitutional monarchy, penalises speech deemed to inspire “hatred or contempt” against the royal family under a Sedition Law passed in 1948.The watchdog’s order against TikTok is the latest move by authorities in the Southeast Asian country to regulate social media platforms.