Malaysia To Trial New ‘Sandbox’ For Safer Social Media From 1 January

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The Communications Ministry is rolling out a regulatory sandbox on 1 January 2026 to test child protection measures on social media

The regulatory sandbox will test how social media platforms handle child protection and consumer safety before full enforcement is deployed.

Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil announced that the initiative would involve the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and selected platforms.

This trial phase is designed to let regulators and tech companies test technical tools in a controlled environment.

By testing these mechanisms for several months, the ministry hopes to ensure that safety measures are robust and will not be easily bypassed.

The move is aimed to align government policy with the technical capabilities of social media apps.

While Australia moved to ban children under 16 from social media, Fahmi said Malaysia will consider a different path

According to The Star, he explained that the country would not follow the Australian model, preferring a strategy that fitted the local context more closely.

The government is leaning towards age verification systems rather than a flat ban.

Fahmi noted that Facebook had already expressed its willingness to assist with age verification using government-issued documents, a path the MCMC is likely to take

This sandbox period will give stakeholders breathing room to fix system weaknesses before a public rollout.

If one technical approach fails, the government will explore alternative options to keep users safe from online risks and scams.

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