Fight the scammers: Wong presenting his views at the World Media Summit in Guangzhou, China. — Bernama
GUANGZHOU: News organisations should work with regulators to fight the scammers behind fraudulent schemes, says prominent media figure Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai.
He said trillions of dollars had been lost to scams globally with many ordinary people losing their life savings.
Wong, who is Star Media Group adviser and Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) chairman, said such cheating was an extension of those who misuse the anonymity of social media to commit defamation and post false and malicious information.
“Misinformation and scamming will worsen as artificial intelligence will be used more in the coming years,” he said.
Speaking at the World Media Summit here, Wong said the mainstream media was familiar with the problems posed by misinformation, adding that updated legislation, including custodial sentences, needed to be applied to punish the culprits.
He said Bernama, like other Malaysian news outlets, had a section for people to verify what they read.
“This is why mainstream media remains so important.
“Now, more than ever, we have a place in the world as legitimate purveyors of information and news.
“This is where global media cooperation comes into play, as we must ensure that we continue to stand strong as a principled body of trust for the public,” he said.
Wong praised China’s Cyberspace Administration for closing more than 100,000 fake news social media accounts between April and May this year.
