News portal The Malaysian Insider probably wasn’t expecting this surprise on its 8th anniversary as it appears that the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has decided to block access to the site this afternoon.
Judging from Twitter users, it seems that users who rely on TM or Celcom to connect to the internet are only able to see the MCMC error screen, saying that “the website has been blocked as it violates national laws”. Meanwhile, Maxis and Digi users are reporting that they are able to access The Malaysian Insider without problems.
In a statement released by MCMC not long ago, The Malaysian Insider was blocked for breaching Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. Section 233 of the particular act involves the improper use of network facilities or network services.
Much like most of MCMC’s block attempts though, you can easily circumnavigate the block by modifying your DNS. That won’t be the only method to work around the block, as it appears that TMI is currently in the process of mirroring their site at The Malaysian Outsider.