The announcement followed a decision by the UK’s communications regulator to open a formal investigation into X.
Malaysia announced on Jan. 13 that it is taking legal action against Elon Musk’s X and xAI over the companies’ failure to ensure user safety, specifically in relation to the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Grok being used to generate sexually explicit images.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) stated in a statement published on its Instagram that legal professionals have been appointed and proceedings will commence shortly.
The announcement came days after Malaysia announced it would block access to Grok, with Indonesia likewise suspending access to the content generator.
In the statement, the commission stated in Malay that it had “identified the misuse of Grok to generate and disseminate harmful content. This includes obscene, sexually explicit, indecent, grossly offensive, and non-consensual manipulated images.”
The commission said that X and xAI, Musk’s AI development company, will be held liable under Malaysian law even though the content was generated by users, saying, “Liability cannot be disclaimed where systemic safeguards have failed.”
“MCMC remains committed to upholding Malaysian law and protecting the public interest. All digital platforms operating in or affecting Malaysia must comply fully with applicable legal and regulatory requirements,” the commission said.
The Epoch Times contacted xAI for comment, but the company did not respond beyond an automated reply.
Malaysia, Indonesia Block Grok
Musk previously addressed the issue of generating illegal material in a Jan. 3 post on X, writing, “Anyone using Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.”
The following day, X’s Safety unit quoted Musk’s post, stating, “We take action against illegal content on X, including Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), by removing it, permanently suspending accounts, and working with local governments and law enforcement as necessary.”
On Jan. 10, Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs said that it had temporarily suspended access to Grok to protect the public from “the risk posed by fake pornographic content” generated by the chatbot.
The MCMC made a similar move the following day, with the Malaysian regulator saying the decision followed repeated misuse of Grok.
The decisions made by the two Southeast Asian countries come as a growing number of nations, including the United Kingdom, scrutinize the social media app’s built-in generative AI tool for allowing users to produce sexually explicit images, including ones that appear to depict children.
UK Opens Investigation
On Jan. 12, the British communications regulator Ofcom opened a formal investigation into X, under the UK’s Online Safety Act, to determine whether the company had “complied with its duties to protect people in the UK from content that is illegal in the UK.”
If Ofcom finds X has broken British law, the company can be required to take steps to come into compliance. Ofcom can also impose fines of up to £18 million ($24 million) or 10 percent of global revenue—whichever is greater.
The regular said: “In the most serious cases of ongoing non-compliance, we can make an application to a court for ‘business disruption measures,’ through which a court could impose an order, on an interim or full basis, requiring payment providers or advertisers to withdraw their services from a platform, or requiring internet service providers to block access to a site in the UK.
“The court may only impose such orders where appropriate and proportionate to prevent significant harm to individuals in the UK.”
Also on Jan. 12, the British Technology Minister Liz Kendall told fellow lawmakers that the government plans to criminalize “nudification apps” through the Crime and Policing Bill, which is currently going through Parliament.
“This new criminal offence will make it illegal for companies to supply tools designed to create non-consensual intimate images, targeting the problem at its source,” Kendall said in a statement to the House of Commons.
In a post on X on Jan. 9 in response to reports that the British government was open to restricting X in the United Kingdom, Musk wrote, “They want any excuse for censorship.”
Kendall on Jan. 12 stated that the government’s position is not about restricting freedom of speech, telling the Commons, “It is about tackling violence against women and girls.”
