05/08/2025

LYFE TUESDAY | AUG 5, 2025

25 Pushing towards safer browsing habits A recent analysis report on children’s digital interests raises concerns over Malaysian children’s exposure to o Anti-malware developer flags harmful online content trends among Malaysian children

inappropriate online content. The findings, covering the period from May 2024 to April 2025, identified engagement with sensitive categories including adult content, profanity, gambling, violence, substance and weapon-related material. According to anonymised data collected by Kaspersky, Malaysian children interacted with content categories that warrant attention. This included adult material (1.42%), gambling, lotteries and sweepstakes (0.98%), weapons, explosives and pyrotechnics (0.68%), profanity, obscenity (0.52%) and violence (0.30%). The searches were observed alongside children’s regular engagement with software and video, internet communication and video games, suggesting harmful material surfaces within the same digital space children use every day. The digital risk is further compounded by increased device access and screen exposure among the vulnerable groups. Data from the Department of Statistics Malaysia showed 85.6% of teens aged 13 to 17 are active internet users and 92% have their own social media accounts, spending an average of three to five hours online each day. The Malaysia Cyber Consumer Association has also warned the accessibility of AI tools and social media platforms is exposing teenagers to new threats such as AI-generated pornography and deepfake content. In line with growing concerns l d SHORT-FORM video platform TikTok has announced a suite of new product features, improving safety as well as inspiring creativity. These features are designed to enhance the experience for teens and families who discover and learn on TikTok, creators who express themselves and build thriving communities – and everyone who connects with the content they love on the platform. Features for families Teen accounts now have more than 50 different features and settings designed just for them to safely express their creativity, connect with friends and learn on the app. TikTok also offers Family Pairing, a group of features that helps parents and guardians tailor their teen’s account to their individual needs. Combined with its Digital Safety Partnership for Families, the app continues to equip families with features and toolkits to have open and ongoing conversations about their experiences online, and have more visibility about their teen’s account, such as: • Automatically notifying a parent when their teen uploads a video,

Malaysian children may be engaging with harmful content online.

over harmful digital exposure among children, the Online Safety Act 2024 has been gazetted and is expected to be enforced soon, once implementation guidelines are finalised by the Malaysia Communications and Multimedia Commission. The Act aims to strengthen protection for young internet users by holding digital platforms accountable for the content they host. These trends observed in Malaysia are echoed across the region. In Singapore, 3.82% of children accessed adult content, while in Vietnam, 3.11% engaged with similar material. Exposure to weapon-related and gambling content was recorded at 3.68% in the Philippines and 0.91% in Thailand, indicating a region-wide pattern of early engagement with potentially harmful online content. “The question we should be asking is – do we really know what our children are spending their time on online? What may seem like

The Online Safety Act 2024 is expected to be enforced soon to promote safer net browsing for children.

innocent screen time can sometimes open the door to risky content. While parental awareness is crucial, it’s just one part of the solution. National regulation, digital education and accessible safety tools must all work together to build safer digital spaces for children,” said Kaspersky head of consumer channel for Asia Pacific Choon Hong Chee. To help children enjoy their activities online more safely, the following best practices are recommended: 0 Foster open conversations with your children about online dangers and set clear usage boundaries to guide them towards safer habits. 0 Stay updated on digital trends and threats, and actively supervise their online interactions to reduce exposure to harmful content. instance, parents will see if their teen (ages 16-17) has enabled downloads for their content, or if their following list is visible to others. They can also see which topics in our Manage Topics feature their teen has chosen to shape their feed. Supporting community well-being Existing features such as Screen Time Management and Sleep Hours already make it easier for users to create digital routines that work for them, and TikTok continues to explore new in-app experiences focused on digital well-being. With guidance and consultation from TikTok’s partners in academia, subject-matter experts and groups such as the Global Youth Council and the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital, TikTok’s continues to support community well-being through positive reinforcement, building habits through encouragement, education and progression. TikTok also introduces a brand new feature called Well-being Missions: a series of short, engaging missions designed to help people develop long-term balanced digital habits. As users complete missions,

public to build cyber awareness and reduce online vulnerabilities. Kaspersky has been expanding its digital safety education initiatives across the Asia Pacific region. In Malaysia, the company recently launched the Bahasa Melayu edition of its children’s book Midori Kuma and a Very Special Race with National Cyber Security Agency using interactive storytelling and reading sessions to make cybersecurity awareness fun and engaging for young audience. Beyond Malaysia, it has also introduced its Kids Cyber Resilience Project in Vietnam and launched the Cybersecurity Alphabet initiative in Japan. Both developed with schools, NGOs and academic institutions to provide child-friendly cybersecurity education.

0 Introduce cybersecurity in a fun and engaging way through tools such as the Kaspersky Cybersecurity Alphabet, a free educational resource that teaches essential concepts, online etiquette and scam awareness. 0 Use parental control solutions such as Kaspersky Safe Kids, which offers tools to manage screen time, filter harmful websites, monitor location and support overall digital well-being. 0 Learn the fun way to talk about digital safety with your kids and download the Midori Kuma and a Very Special Race children’s book now. 0 Tap into national resources such as CyberSafe programme by CyberSecurity Malaysia, which provides educational tools to help children, teens, parents and the

TikTok unveils new trust, safety tools for creators, families

The visibility tools will help parents monitor their teens’ online acitivity.

they earn badges that encourage and reinforce mindful behaviours. Empowering creators with new tools New features help protect TikTok creators and empower them with tools to succeed: 0 Creator Care Mode, which helps creators better filter out offensive and unwanted comments. 0 Mute feature for TikTok Live, that helps creators on Live to bulk mute

words, phrases and emojis. 0 Content Check Lite, which allows creators to pre-check whether their content is likely to be ineligible for the For You feed before they post it. 0 Creator Inbox, a new professional inbox experience designed to help creators manage their messages more efficiently. 0 Creator Chat Room, which allows creators to connect and interact directly with eligible followers on TikTok.

TikTok introduces new features, improving safety. – PEXELSPIC

story or photo that is visible to others on TikTok. This helps parents stay informed and start open conversations about what their teen is posting, without disrupting a teen’s creativity or independence. • Provide greater insight into the privacy settings their teen selects. For