KUCHING: A 17-year-old secondary school student’s photograph was allegedly misused in an online advertisement offering access to private videos and indecent photographs for RM25.
SUPP Public Complaints Bureau chief Milton Foo said the case came to light after the student’s male classmate spotted an Instagram advertisement featuring her profile picture.
The advertisement directed users to pay RM25 for access to a Telegram group purportedly containing secretly recorded private videos and indecent photographs.
Foo said the student, fearing her photograph had been used to create AI-generated indecent content, asked a friend to contact the person behind the advertisement to gather evidence before lodging a police report.
The friend subsequently made five payments totalling RM125 through Boost after being repeatedly told the payment method was incorrect, but was never given access to the group.
“This shows that scams are no longer targeting only adults.
“Secondary school students are now being targeted, with their photographs potentially being exploited to fabricate indecent content,” Foo said.
He called for an inter-agency cybercrime task force involving the Finance Ministry, Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and police to strengthen action against illegal activities on social media and messaging platforms.
Foo also urged parents and schools to warn students against suspicious links, transferring money to strangers and online advertisements claiming to sell private photographs or videos.
“The creation, distribution or sale of indecent material involving minors could constitute offences under the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017 and the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998,” he said.
