Over 8,410 fake 3R accounts detected since Johor polls, says Fahmi

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil announced that over 8,410 fake social media accounts exploiting race, religion and royalty (3R) issues have been detected since the Johor state election. Speaking at the 2026 PKR National Congress, Fahmi highlighted that hundreds of fake accounts trying to manipulate public sentiment are being discovered nearly daily.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is collaborating with platform providers to remove flagged accounts and curb the spread of sensitive content. Fahmi explained that these deceptive accounts are often created using real people's photographs and personal information, then used to post inflammatory content.

The posts are taken as screenshots and shared online before being deleted, complicating the tracing of their origin. Authorities plan to enhance technical measures to more effectively identify and address such accounts. Fahmi emphasized the importance of continued cooperation between authorities and social media platforms to prevent the spread of false information and the exploitation of sensitive 3R issues.