Secret online group sharing sexualised images of children, teens

New Straits Times

14-06-2025

KUALA LUMPUR: A clandestine social media group is reportedly collecting and sharing images of children and underage teenagers, sexualising them among members.
More disturbingly, the group also possesses collections of images of underage teenagers in school uniforms, said Siraj Jalil, president of the Malaysia Cyber Consumer Association (MCCA).
Siraj, who recently exposed the group, said it had been operating for a considerable time.
He added that membership is restricted to individuals identified as having similar "habits" and who are trusted by the administrators.
"The group exists on several platforms, including mainstream social media and digital communication applications like Telegram."
The group uses closed forums to exchange photos and videos of children, including those secretly recorded or uploaded without parental consent.
Siraj said the photos of children in school uniforms were subjected to obscene and disgusting comments.
He called for action against the group's administrators and urged social media platforms to detect, report, and block such groups.
"We cannot wait until victims suffer physical abuse or become victims of these people's perverse acts. The collection and dissemination of these images themselves are a serious form of exploitation," he said.
He also urged parents to be more vigilant about photos of their children shared online and to activate maximum privacy settings.
"MCCA is ready to cooperate with enforcement agencies, including the police and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), to combat cybercrime activities targeting children."
Late last year, the police and MCMC conducted a series of coordinated raids across Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Johor, Terengganu, Penang, and Perak.
The operation led to the arrest of 13 suspects and the seizure of 40,000 child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) and pornographic content from various devices.