The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Cybersecurity Malaysia need to be given more legal clout to combat website hackers.

Information Communication and Culture Minister Rais Yatim said the existing provision was inadequate to enable them to act swiftly.

"Determining who the hackers are is a tedious task and if the latter are in Malaysia, what appropriate action can be taken against them," he told reporters in Singapore today.

He had earlier attended the Asian Ministers' Forum on Information Technology and Communications (CommunicAsia) 2011 officiated by Singapore Deputy Premier Teo Chee Hean.

"We do have the law in place, Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act - we need to revamp the follow-up mechanism, in this respect, equipment and trained manpower," he said.

Meanwhile, Rais said the forum attended by representatives from more than 50 countries was an opportunity for the international community to find ways to jointly counter cyber crimes.

- Bernama