Fahmi Launches ‘AIFA’ AI Chatbot to Combat Fake News on WhatsApp

CYBERJAYA, Jan 28 — Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil announced the launch of AIFA (Artificial Intelligence Fact-Check Assistant), a new chatbot designed to help Malaysians verify fake news on WhatsApp.

AIFA, part of the government’s initiative to fight misinformation and promote digital literacy, allows users to submit suspicious messages for verification. Currently, it handles text-based content, with plans to extend its capabilities to images and videos in the future.

Fahmi highlighted that WhatsApp is widely used for news-sharing, often without proper fact-checking. The chatbot, which supports Malay, English, Mandarin, and Tamil, is aimed at providing accurate information to users.

According to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), over 20,000 fake news items were flagged last year, with the majority taken down from social media. Fahmi said the initiative would be expanded through 1,100 Digital Community Centres nationwide to reach all Malaysians.