In an effort to address this, starting from 14 April 2026, select advertisers of financial products and services will be required to complete a verification process before they can run ads on Google's platforms. As part of the verification process, financial services advertisers will need to demonstrate that they are authorised by Malaysian authorities, such as
Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the
Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) and the
Labuan Financial Services Authority (LFSA), and have completed Google’s advertiser verification program in order to begin promoting their products and services.
FSV introduces a unique, structural layer of defense and directly supports the government's fight against financial fraud. It enforces local licensing standards at the point of advertising, effectively closing the loopholes that bad actors exploit to reach Malaysian citizens. It is already available in other
countries like the UK, Singapore, and Australia.
What this means for advertisers required to verify:
- Advertisers will be able to apply for verification through our compliance partner, G2, starting 10 March 2026, and the enforcement will go into effect on 14 April 2026.
- Advertisers may initiate verification themselves.
- Advertisers who provide or promote in-scope financial services must successfully complete the updated verification process by the time enforcement begins in order to show financial services ads to Malaysian users. This will include financial service advertisers, and non-financial services advertisers who are targeting users seeking financial services.
- Advertisers that have not successfully completed the new verification process by 14 April, 2026 will no longer be allowed to show financial services ads.
“Scammers are constantly evolving their tactics to evade detection. That’s why we’re strengthening our defenses to ensure only authorised financial providers can reach users on Google. By partnering with authorities to enforce these stricter checks, we’re staying one step ahead of bad actors and giving Malaysians greater confidence when engaging with financial services online,” said Ben King, Country Managing Director, Google Malaysia
"MCMC welcomes this initiative by Google as it is a critical step in preventing financial scams from reaching Malaysians. Tackling digital fraud requires a whole-of-ecosystem approach, where technology platforms, regulators, and the public all play a role. Verifying the legitimacy of financial advertisers is essential to our goal of ensuring a safe and trusted digital environment for all Malaysians,” said Abdul Karim Fakir Ali, Managing Director of Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
FSV strengthens Google’s multi-layered defense system, which includes policies around
Advertiser Identity Verification and
Limited Ad Serving for high-risk categories. These are complemented by user-facing AI tools like Circle to Search and Google Lens, which help Malaysians detect potential scams in real-time.
Find out more about Financial Services Verification
here.
