PUTRAJAYA, 12 FEBRUARY 2025 — In conjunction with Safer Internet Day 2025, four like-minded organisations, namely Ratio:Cause, CelcomDigi Berhad, Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia (Content Forum), and Meta Platforms, Inc., joined forces to launch Youth IRL (In Real Life), a fellowship designed to equip young changemakers with the knowledge and skills to champion online safety and scams awareness in the community.
This initiative follows the success of Creators IRL, the flagship programme that developed strong online safety advocates amongst well-known online content creators, whose ensuing social media content on safety awareness garnered over 7 million views and engagements to date. The partners have decidedly expanded the programme to empower youth leaders who can influence change among their peers.
The Youths IRL fellowship selected 10 promising youths, aged 18-25, from Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Kedah, Perak, Sabah, and Sarawak based on their strong interest in online safety issues, critical thinking skills and ideas for solutions or measures to address the issues. Through mentorship from the Ministry of Communications, CelcomDigi, Content Forum, PayNet, and CyberSecurity Malaysia, they will be trained in online safety, scam awareness, and digital fluency while gaining a foundation in public policy. These youths will also engage in forums to discuss the on-ground realities and challenges faced by the digital society and identify the gap in legislation to ensure that policies and regulations remain relevant and effective in addressing online safety issues. At the end of the three-month fellowship, these digital natives youths will develop a working paper with policy recommendations on online content and internet governance, which will be presented to the Ministry of Communications.
The fellowship is part of a holistic programme called the Online Safety IRL campaign, aimed at empowering Malaysians with online safety habits and perspectives to combat the rise in online harms such as scams, online child abuse, and cyberbullying. The campaign consists of the Creators IRL fellowship for content creators and the Youths IRL fellowship for youth leaders.
Through Creators IRL, 10 social media influencers and content creators were equipped with creative strategies to integrate online safety knowledge into their contents, raising community resilience against online harms through their platform. The Creators IRL fellows are Vikarworld, Raj Mahal, Alexey Brock, Hafiz Baharudin, Shahirah Shahrudin, Eizuwan Fulamak, Hubert Lee, Jane Teoh, Dharshamini Kesavan, and Esty Richard. Together, the overall Online Safety IRL social media campaign has produced over 40 videos across platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok focusing on scam awareness, child online safety, and anti-cyberbullying, dangers on online gaming websites, and actions to take if encountered any such threats including awareness on the National Scam Resource Centre’s 997 hotline.
Supporting this programme, Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching highlighted the need for continuous engagement with youths and content creators in improving the safety of digital spaces. She said, “Tackling online threats requires a balanced approach, holding perpetrators accountable while empowering internet users with knowledge to protect themselves. By equipping youths with knowledge of online safety and including youth voices in policymaking, we aim to work towards digital policies that reflect the experiences of internet users. The Ministry of Communications aims to cultivate a digital environment that nurtures creativity, innovation, and freedom of expression while upholding the law. We are thankful for the content creators, youth leaders, and stakeholders in the social media and telecommunications industries who have committed themselves to working with us in achieving these goals. We are proud of the progress we have made so far, and we look forward to what we can continue to achieve through our future collective efforts.”
Recognising the ever-evolving dynamics of the online and digital world, as well as the resounding success and impact garnered in the past seven months, the campaign will be expanded on a greater scale. With Malaysia chairing and hosting the ASEAN Summit this year, it would be a significant platform to implement transnational collaboration to combat online crimes through a more regionally-focused online safety campaign.
“Online safety has become an essential part of our everyday lives we must all embrace. Through this initiative, we are empowering content creators and nurturing emerging youth leaders to spark real behavioural change in the digital space. We've witnessed incredible potential in both our creators and our youths, proving that innovative, safe online practices can transform communities. I truly hope this marks the beginning of many more impactful programmes that will further elevate digital safety in our nation.”, said New Su Shern, Executive Director of Ratio:Cause, the social change impact agency executing this programme and focused on using social and behavioural change to design scalable solutions.
Philip Ling, Head of Sustainability at CelcomDigi said, “As a company serving over 20 million Malaysians, we recognise our responsibility to foster a safer and more secure digital environment for all, and with our scale and resources, we are uniquely positioned to build a trusted digital society along with partners. Through initiatives like this, we are building a dynamic community of advocates and collective voice to amplify online safety awareness, shape conversations and influence behaviours."
“We want people, especially young people, to connect with others in an environment where they feel safe, and where they leave our apps feeling good about the time they spend on them. By empowering young people in Malaysia with the tools, support, and resources they need, we're helping to create a safer online community for everyone. This initiative is just one example of our ongoing efforts on online safety in Malaysia, and we're excited to see the positive impact it will have,” said Daniel Lim, Head of Public Policy for Malaysia at Meta.
“Youth are the true digital natives, living and shaping the online world every day. Any effort to govern that space—whether through policy, advocacy, or regulation—must not just include them but truly empower them. We will continue to support these efforts where youth voices matter, not for token representation, but to drive actual, actionable, lasting change that reflects the realities of the world today,” said Mediha Mahmood, CEO of the Content Forum.
To find out more information on the programmes and view the output from Creators IRL fellows, readers can visit onlinesafetyirl.com and follow @heycreatorsirl on Instagram and TikTok. To follow the progress of Youths IRL, readers can follow @youthsirl on Instagram and TikTok.
For any media enquiries, please contact:
Onysha Boak
Programme Officer
Ratio:Cause
+6011-3068 5708
Ratio:Cause (pronounced Ratio to Cause) is a social change impact agency that focuses on closing the gap that creates inequalities using social and behavioural change to design scalable solutions through building better systems and policies. We look at human behaviour from evidence-based and human-centred approaches to design targeted solutions that influence decision-making and move people to action.
Meta Platforms, Inc. Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities and grow businesses. When Facebook launched in 2004, it changed the way people connect. Apps like Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp further empowered billions around the world. Now, Meta is moving beyond 2D screens toward immersive experiences like augmented and virtual reality to help build the next evolution in social technology.
CelcomDigi is Malaysia’s largest mobile network operator with more than 20.6 million users on its network. Established on 1 December 2022 from the merger of Celcom and Digi, the company aims to serve the growing digital needs of its customers by leveraging its newly combined widest network footprint, distribution touchpoints, innovative range of digital products and services, and superior customer experience powered by over 3,800 top industry experts. The company has clearly defined ambitions to advance the nation, inspire Malaysian society, and be a leader in inclusion and ESG practices. For more information on CelcomDigi, visit www.celcomdigi.com.
The Communications and Multimedia Content Forum of Malaysia (Content Forum)
The Content Forum is a self-regulatory organisation, and a registered industry forum dedicated to facilitating and advocating for the self-regulation of content on electronic networked mediums in Malaysia. It establishes content standards and best practices through a Content Code and ensures compliance via a Complaints Bureau. The Content Forum maintains a strong working relationship with content industry players, including social media platforms, to address online harms and ensure the protection of children. The Content Forum believes that collaboration and a multi-stakeholder approach is the best way to ensure a safe and thriving content industry. Additionally, it supports open dialogues on these issues, believing such conversations are a catalyst for change.
