New OONI data published in this report reveals that 39 different websites were blocked in Malaysia by ISPs through the DNS injection of block pages. These sites include:

• News outlets, blogs and medium.com for covering the 1MDB scandal.
• A site that expresses heavy criticism towards Islam.
• Popular torrenting sites (such as thepiratebay.org).
• A popular online dating site.
• Pornographic sites.
• Gambling sites.

While the blocking of some sites (such as pornography and online gambling) can be legally justified under Malaysia’s laws and regulations, the blocking of sites covering the 1MDB scandal illustrates that such censorship was politically motivated.

On a positive note, some previously blocked sites (Bersih rally websites) were found to be accessible when tested between September to November 2016. No signs of censorship were detected when examining the accessibility of social media, censorship circumvention tools and LGBTI websites in the country during the testing period.

Full research: https://ooni.torproject.org/post/malaysia-report/

Coverage of report in media:

• 报导一马批伊教　去年39网站遭封锁 - Oriental Daily
• From porn to politics: Malaysian ISPs aid censorship by blocking 39 sites - Malay Mail Online