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A 17-year-old boy made RM76,000 selling child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) before he was busted by police
The illicit transactions allegedly took place over the course of nine months, according to the New Straits Times.
It is part of the latest crackdown on CSAM, called 'Op Pedo Bersepadu', which was led by the Sexual, Women, and Child Investigations Division (D11) with assistance from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
The operation reportedly saw 37 raids conducted nationwide between 22 and 30 September.
Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Mohd Khalid Ismail.
Image via New Straits TimesThe suspect would purportedly sell illicit content he found on Tumblr for RM30 to RM50 per video
Police Inspector-General Datuk Seri Mohd Khalid Ismail told reporters that the teen ran his business from a Telegram channel, and payments were made via QR and e-wallet transactions.
He said police found other suspects who ran multiple channels to circulate and sell explicit content, often disguising the files within cloud storage folders or hidden links.
It reflected "a worrying sign of moral collapse and digital profiteering among youth", said Mohd Khalid, who added that digital platforms were easily being misused for exploitation and profit.
Image used for illustration purposes only.
Image via EnvatoMohd Khalid added that parents need to play a stronger role in monitoring their children's online activities, and to instil stronger moral values
Authorities are now also working to tighten surveillance on e-wallet ecosystems to better monitor suspicious transactions, which may be linked to illegal content.
The case is being investigated under Sections 8 and 10 of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act, which criminalise the sale and possession of CSAM.
