Malaysia studying possibility of banning Facebook misuse

The Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is currently studying the possibility of putting a ban on Facebook for the sake of limiting its misuse.
MCMC Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek was reported as saying earlier that the government would study whether it was necessary to bar access to Facebook following cases of abuse involving the social website.
He said his ministry was conducting studies to gather public views on the matter.
For his part, Universiti Sains Malaysia Communication Studies Faculty senior lecturer Assoc Prof Mohamad Md Yusoff said the move was more apt compared to shutting down access to the social website Facebook to prevent abuse by users.
"At present, with cases such as insulting Islam, numerous baseless allegations made on Facebook, it is quite difficult to track down the culprits, especially when they can easily get away with excuses of account being hacked, fake account or outside server," he told Bernama.
Meanwhile, Universiti Malaysia Sabah Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Heritage senior lecturer Saat Awang Damit said the registration of users with MCMC would also create a society of responsible Facebook users in the country.
He said only responsible users were capable of making fair comments and share their views in a sensible and proper manner, without causing misunderstanding or spreading false information.