Meta Suspends Malaysiakini Facebook Accounts After Cybertrooper Exposé
The suspension affected Malaysiakini’s English-language page, KiniTV accounts, and at least one administrator’s personal account.
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Meta temporarily suspended several Facebook accounts belonging to Malaysiakini on Monday (30 September), citing alleged violations of community standards.
The suspension occurred less than two hours after the news outlet published an investigation exposing a network of coordinated accounts boosting support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Facebook.
Malaysiakini said its English-language Facebook page and KiniTV accounts were suspended at approximately 5:40 PM local time.
At least one administrator’s personal account was also affected.
The suspension notice from Meta claimed that the accounts violated cybersecurity guidelines, specifically alleging the collection of sensitive information from other users.
Automated Flagging vs. Journalistic Standards
Meta’s automated system flagged the accounts for allegedly violating community standards on cybersecurity.
The notice stated: “Our technology found that your page does not comply with our community standards. As a result, our technology took action.”
The platform’s cybersecurity rules prohibit users from “collecting sensitive information from others,” including accessing accounts without permission or using phishing tactics.
However, Malaysiakini maintained that their investigation relied solely on publicly available information and followed standard journalistic practices.
The news outlet had even contacted Meta for an official comment before publication, providing a 12-page document detailing the cybertrooper network’s operations.
Meta’s Contradictory Response Creates Questions
Despite the suspension, Meta’s official response to the allegations against the cybertrooper was notably different.
A Meta spokesperson told Malaysiakini: “At this time, our review has not found evidence of violations of our coordinated inauthentic behaviour (CIB) policy related to the prime minister’s Facebook page”.
This created an apparent contradiction – while Meta found no policy violations regarding the alleged cybertrooper network, it simultaneously suspended the news outlet that exposed the network for supposed cybersecurity violations.
The suspended Facebook pages were restored after Malaysiakini appealed to Meta.
The news portal’s Bahasa Melayu Facebook account, which shares Malay-language content, was not affected by the suspension.
Some social media users expressed support for the suspension, with posts celebrating Meta’s action against Malaysiakini and calling for further restrictions on the outlet’s Bahasa Melayu accounts.
Im very happy META sekat Akau FB Mkini inggeris… harap FB Mkini BM juga
— 老闆 lǎobǎn ™ (@KartunisGandum) September 30, 2025
dah perangai walaun tgk admin mereka
harap Meta sekat juga akaun MKINI BM ini… dah perangai walaun lindung sebalik kebebasan bersuara pic.twitter.com/QKuRmNLHgU
Based on original reporting by Malaysiakini.
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