Pix of M’sian celebs’ kids turn up on porn site
M'sian comedian puzzled on how his children's photos ended up on porn site
From time to time, Malaysian comedian Harith Iskander would receive Google Alerts to inform him of online articles or posts about him.
But what he saw in his e-mail inbox on Wednesday left him shocked, disgusted and upset.
He found that his name had appeared on a pornographic website and that a photo of his then-newborn son, alongside lewd images of naked women, was featured on the site.
There was also a photo of him cradling Zander Xayne, who is now three years old, as well as photos of the children of popular Malaysian celebrities.
The celebrities include actress-singer Erra Fazira and singer Tomok. (See report below.)
In a Facebook post yesterday evening, Harith, 48, said all the photos of the children have since been taken down from the site, which is believed to be based in the US.
He told The New Paper in a telephone interview yesterday: "I was shocked, angry and confused as to why anyone would put my son's photos on such a site.
"As a father, my first priority is to protect my children and that is why I got into action immediately and tried to find out as much information as I could.
"There is no real threat (to their safety), but it is still disconcerting to find photos of your children on a porn site. Your first instinct as a parent is to protect your children."
Hours after the discovery, he posted about the incident on Facebook to seek advice on what he could do, calling it "disgusting and incredibly disturbing".
Several netizens responded, with one saying that his checks indicated it was not a Malaysian website, despite the use of captions in Malay to accompany the photos.
He suspected this could be because a Malaysian had posted the photos on the site and advised Harith to contact the website to remove the images.
At press time, Harith's Facebook post about the incident had been shared about 6,000 times.
Harith sought the help of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission and lodged a police report.
The funnyman, touted as Malaysia's Godfather of Stand-up Comedy, then worked closely with Erra's ex-husband, Mr Engku Emran Engku Zainal Abidin, to tackle the matter.
A photo of Erra's and Mr Engku Emran's six-year-old daughter, Engku Aleesya, had also appeared on the site.
DISGUSTED
Harith's wife, Dr Jezamine Lim, 31, told The New Paper she was rendered speechless and felt "so disgusted I vomited after that".
Dr Lim, who is pregnant with their third child, said: "I couldn't stop thinking about it. My children are my happiness, I can take anything but this... As a mother, I couldn't accept it."
The couple said it was important to raise awareness on child pornography and paedophilia in Malaysia.
"People need to be aware that it is a real, serious issue. I know people who have paedophiles in their families, but no one is open about it. Society needs to be aware," said Dr Lim.
"To think the world has come to this. When I was young, I could play at the playground with no fear. Now, I have to say I am quite fearful (for my children)."
The couple, who tied the knot in 2010 and also have a daughter named Alessandrea Jayne who will turning two soon, do not plan to stop posting photos of their children on social media or change their account settings to private.
"We can't say that we can't upload photos of our children onto social media because it's part of the modern world and we want something to show them when they grow older," said Dr Lim.
Harith refuses to "cower to the threat", saying: "We should work on tackling the bigger issue at hand.
"I don't want to entirely block my children from the big, bad world but instead focus on how to make it less of a big, bad world.
"There are too many dos and don'ts now. As a child, I grew up in a world when I could roam and explore freely and run in the streets. I would love if my children could do that too," he said.
We should work on tackling the bigger issue at hand. I don't want to entirely block my children from the big, bad world but instead focus on how to make it less of a big, bad world.
- Malaysian comedian Harith Iskander
TWO OTHER M'SIAN CELEBS TARGETED
SHOCKED: Pictures of the children of singer Tomok (top) and singer-actress Erra Fazira (above) were also found on the website. - PHOTOS: FREDA HASSAN, SINGTEL MIO TV
Malaysian entertainers Erra Fazira, 41, and Tomok, 31,were also shocked to find their children's photos on the adult website.
Singer Tomok, whose real name is Shah Indrawan Ismail, 31, told Harian Metro: "It is shocking because this involves children and pornography. I found out at the recording studio when a friend informed me of Harith's Facebook post.
"I confirmed that it was my child."
Tomok lodged a report with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission.
The former member of Malaysian boy band New Boyz has two sons - Arrianshah Akid, three, and three-month-old Andrashah Iman.
When contacted, Erra's personal assistant told The New Paper: "With regards to this, Erra has no comment. She can only say that she is extremely upset."
She told TNP to contact Erra's ex-husband, Mr Engku Emran Engku Zainal Abidin, for comment instead. But attempts to contact him yesterday were unsuccessful.
Experts: Be mindful when posting online
Parents who find themselves in Harith Iskander's shoes should demand that the owners of the adult websites remove the photos of their children.
Local intellectual property and technology lawyer Han Wah Teng said owners of websites based in the US have to abide by the demand as they are bound by the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
In this case, the website is believed to be based in the US.
However, in cases where the websites are operating in countries with different copyright laws, this might not apply, Mr Han said.
He added: "It is hard to advise on precautions to take in this day and age. Anything and everything can end up on the Internet if you are not careful."
Lawyer Chia Boon Teck said that taking legal action in Harith's case might prove difficult.
"Whether civil or criminal action, the biggest difficulty lies in tracking down the people responsible for the posting," he said.
"Based on the description of the photos, they don't seem to be related to pornography, so it's also not easy to accuse (the culprits) of anything."
Mr Lars Voedisch, managing director of public relations and social media consultancy PRecious Communications, said parents should be mindful of two things when it comes to sharing photos of their children on social media - their privacy settings and the type of photos they are sharing.
He said: "Do they really want to share it with everyone or just a private circle? They should also think about photos that can be misinterpreted in other different ways.
"They should be more careful when it comes to young children."
He also stressed: "Everything you share on social media can be shared globally and for a lifetime. If you don't want it to land in the wrong hands, don't post it on social media."
Everything you share on social media can be shared globally and for a lifetime.
- Mr Lars Voedisch, managing director of public relations and social media consultancy PRecious Communications
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