20/05/2025

TUESDAY | MAY 20, 2025

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Cyberstalking new challenge in battle against digital crime

Need to gain young voter support: PKR vice-president

BUKIT MERTAJAM: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) needs to strengthen its machinery and woo the public with community programmes for young voters to gain their support in the upcoming 16th general election (GE16). Its vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar said a study showed that 68% of youths were not interested in politics. “We understand that they (the 18 year-old youths) would follow choices of their friends and not their parents when casting votes. If their parents are voting for Party A, they would vote for Party C. “This is the challenge we face,” she said during her speech at the party’s North Zone grassroots outreach programme at Dewan Ng Yam Huat on Sunday. PKR women’s chief Fadhlina Sidek and Penang state leadership council deputy chairman Datuk Dr Mohamad Abdul Hamid also attended the event. Nurul Izzah, who is contesting the deputy president’s post for the 2025 2028 term, also reminded members not to forget the party’s history and the challenges since its founding on April 4, 1999. On a suggested debate with her rival Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli, she said she would focus more on meeting the party grassroots. Nurul Izzah also stressed that she would focus on GE16 and several upcoming state elections. – Bernama BN only works with like-minded parties: Zahid TENOM: Barisan Nasional (BN) will only cooperate with parties that share the same goals of developing the country and uniting the people, said its chairman Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. Ahmad Zahid, who is also Umno president, said BN remains open to such cooperation despite having already decided to work with Pakatan Harapan (PH) to face the upcoming 17th Sabah state election. “We are never completely closed off, but we should not open our doors too wide because there are wolves in sheep’s clothing trying to enter and destroy our home,” the deputy prime minister said when officiating at the Gerak17 Umno programme for the Kemabong state constituency yesterday. The event was also attended by Sabah BN chairman Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin. “The best option is cooperation between BN, PH and like-minded parties. This is necessary because, based on my study, in 77 countries, no single party has been able to form a dominant government. “Therefore, we must not be greedy for power, we must be confident in sharing power for unity, harmony and political consensus, which is the best way forward for us.” He also urged all Umno divisions in Sabah to support one another in carrying out groundwork to ensure victory for its candidates contesting in the Sabah polls. – Bernama

it the top cybercrime in the country. This was followed by digital intrusions, with 755 cases. Commenting on the technical landscape, Taylor’s University professor and Global Alliance for Cyber Safety director Datuk Husin Jazri said stalkerware and obfuscated malware are increasingly being used in cases of intimate partner violence and gender-based threats in Malaysia. “These tools allow perpetrators to monitor, record and control victims remotely. They are difficult to detect,” he said. Husin cited several examples of such malicious apps, which are often disguised as phone RAM boosters, battery optimisers, child monitoring tools or even free keyboard apps. These apps commonly request high-level permissions or exploit Android’s Accessibility Services to intercept data and log user activity. Husin also warned that fake system apps are being used to steal sensitive information. “These apps disguise themselves as firmware updates but are actually sideloaded apps or

phishing tools. “They operate silently in the background without any visible icon, capable of recording microphone audio, capturing periodic screenshots and even harvesting messaging data from apps such as WhatsApp and Telegram,” he added. He also said Malaysia has limited technical capacity to trace and effectively respond to cyberstalking cases. “We need a dedicated agency to ensure our digital citizens are safe and aware of the surrounding threats that are targeted at a random pace,” he said. He also urged immediate action, including the introduction of a Cyber Safety Act, revamping outdated laws like the Computer Crimes Act 1997, and rolling out cyber education in schools. “Companies should be mandated to provide regular training for employees on data protection and online safety, as cyber threats are constantly evolving, particularly with the rise of AI (artificial intelligence),” he added.

o Existing laws inadequate to deal with such acts due to anonymous online behaviour, outdated legal tools and limited victim support mechanisms

Ű BY FAIZ RUZMAN newsdesk@thesundaily.com

targeted cases,” he said. Amirudin also advised victims of cyberstalking to systematically gather and preserve digital evidence to support investigations. “Victims should take clear screenshots of messages, call logs, profiles and any suspicious content, ensuring that dates and times are clearly visible. Chat logs, emails and media files must be saved in their original, unaltered format.” “Where possible, back up all evidence to a secure cloud service or external storage device. Once collected, this evidence should be reported promptly to relevant authorities for appropriate action.” According to Malaysia Computer Emergency Response Team data, Malaysia logged 4,219 online fraud cases in 2024, making

PETALING JAYA: Never mind scam calls, stalking by cyber creeps is the new horror experience. Experts say cyberstalking has become the new focus in Malaysia’s fight against cybercrime, with spyware-laden apps, stolen personal data and insider leaks providing stalkers the means to invade lives undetected. Cybersecurity Malaysia CEO Datuk Dr Amirudin Abdul Wahab said despite updates in 2023, existing laws remain inadequate to deal with cybercrimes. “Malaysia amended the Penal Code in 2023 to criminalise stalking, including cyberstalking, under Section 507A. However, enforcement challenges remain due to anonymous online behaviour, outdated legal tools and limited victim support mechanisms,” Amirudin said in an emailed response to theSun. He also said these cases also remain underreported due to stigma, fear and lack of awareness. Amirudin said the personal data used in such incidents is often obtained through data breaches, public social media accounts, malicious mobile apps or leaks from third parties, such as insiders from call centres who sell personal contact information to scam syndicates.

Amirudin said victims should back up all

evidence to a secure cloud service or external storage device and report promptly to relevant authorities for appropriate

“Scammers use this information to make unsolicited calls, send messages or add individuals to scam groups on platforms like Telegram or WhatsApp. While GPS tracking and spyware are less common, they are used in more Govt focusing on enhancing youth productivity: DPM action. – SYED AZAHAR SYED OSMAN/THESUN

KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 106,000 applications have been received from youths nationwide to join Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) courses since the intake process was centralised under the TVET Intake Unit beginning early last month. Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the number was expected to rise to at least 150,000 applications by the end of June, reflecting the effectiveness of the new approach. Ahmad Zahid, who is also Rural and Regional Development minister, said apart from youth enrolment in the institutions, the government was also focusing on assisting 1.16 million youths in the e-hailing, p-hailing and creative industries. He said many of them possessed

talent formal qualifications, and if they remained in these sectors without upskilling, their productivity might decline by the age of 40. “For their future, the government is offering reskilling and upskilling programmes in TVET fields so they can enhance their skills and income. A daily allowance will also be provided to ease the financial impact during the training period.” Ahmad Zahid said not all youths excelled academically, so the TVET pathway should be given due attention as a practical alternative that promises a bright future. “If they manage to reach the Malaysian Skills Certificate Level 3 (SKM-3), it is already equivalent to the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia and can secure them a minimum salary of RM2,500. In fact, SKM-4 and SKM-5 but lacked

are equivalent to diploma-level qualifications,” he said during the closing ceremony of the Federal Territory-level 2025 National Youth Day celebration on Sunday, which was also attended by Youth and Sports Deputy Minister Adam Adli Abdul Halim. Ahmad Zahid, who is also National TVET Council chariman, said six universities were ready to offer TVET courses, namely Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL), Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Malacca, Universiti Selangor, Universiti Malaysia Perlis and Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, Bernama reported. He also voiced concern over the rate of fatal crashes involving youths, noting that 90% of the 6,000 deaths recorded annually involved

this group. “If this continues, we will lose a productive labour force among the youths. As chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Road Safety, I want the Malaysian Youth Council and respective state youth councils to organise special motorcycling courses for young riders, including on safety and maintenance,” he said. He also urged the creation of other special programmes for youths not affiliated with any associations, to ensure they were not left out of development efforts. Ahmad Zahid also agreed that initiatives be implemented for youths in the Federal Territory, including free e-sports courses at UniKL, TVET programmes in the electric vehicle automotive field and green technology-based programmes for urban youth.