Jin Daily Tech Trivia – The End of DNS Blocking for Our Phone and Internet?

Jin Daily Tech Trivia – The End of DNS Blocking for Our Phone and Internet?

One of the most interesting clauses in the new US–Malaysia Trade Deal (besides the removal of the 6% internet tax, of course) is Article 3.2 — which touches on the Domain Name System (DNS).

Specifically, it states that Malaysia must stop redirecting all DNS traffic to local DNS services.

Remember those times when your internet suddenly goes down on a particular telco or ISP — but the same website works fine if you switch to another provider? Or when your favorite website stops loading on mobile data, yet works perfectly when you connect to your office Wi-Fi?

You’re not alone.

Back in August 2024, reports revealed that telcos were instructed by the MCMC to “enhance DNS management” to protect citizens from online harm. This meant internet traffic routed through alternative DNS providers like Google DNS or Cloudflare was forcibly redirected back to local DNS.

After public backlash, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil announced a U-turn on the directive.

However, it’s worth noting that since 2015, all local DNS services provided by telcos and ISPs have been required to comply with the MCMC blocklist — a practice that actually dates back to as early as 2008, when Malaysia Today became one of the first well-known sites to be blocked.

Now that the US–Malaysia Trade Deal has been signed, could we finally see an end to forced DNS redirection in Malaysia? 👀 Pendakwah Teknologi tolong bincang.