A NEW AI-powered fact-checking chatbot has been launched in Malaysia, but its effectiveness and potential for misuse are already raising concerns.
The “Aifa” chatbot, available on WhatsApp, aims to combat the spread of misinformation, particularly unverified forwarded messages.
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil highlighted the rapid spread of fake news, claiming it travels “faster than Malaysia’s internet speed”.
While users have reportedly praised Aifa’s speed and efficiency, journalists and media organisations have cautioned against over-reliance on AI.
Radzi Razak of Gerakan Media Merdeka warned that misinformation is often linked to political agendas, media illiteracy, and limited access to credible sources.
He expressed concern that a government-regulated chatbot could be manipulated to favour official narratives, suppress criticism, or even label legitimate dissent as fake news, given the government’s history of using legislation to silence critics.
“An independent and free media is still the best safeguard against misinformation, not government-controlled AI,” Razak said.
The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) also acknowledged the potential benefits of AI tools but stressed the risk of inherent biases within the training data.
NUJ president Low Boon Tat explained that chatbots can inherit inconsistencies and biases, potentially perpetuating misinformation rather than correcting it.
He warned that without robust safeguards, fact-checking could be used for censorship rather than truth-seeking.
Low called for independent oversight, potentially through an agency free from government influence or a coalition of academics, civil servants, and international organisations, to ensure transparency.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has reported a significant problem with online misinformation.
In 2024 alone, they requested removing 19,546 fake news items, with 17,245 subsequently taken down.
Between 2020 and 27 January 2024, 25,114 fake news items were removed.
Despite these efforts, the launch of Aifa highlights the ongoing challenge of combating misinformation in Malaysia.
-BTS Media
