Sugar daddy app not vice platform, says spokesperson

PETALING JAYA: TheSugarBook, a Malaysian online dating app, is not a platform for prostitution or pornography, a spokesperson for the company has said.
It called itself a niche online social networking platform for like-minded, consenting adults to meet and develop a mutually beneficial relationship.
"We do not condone any illegal activity whatsoever. Any user who is suspicious or who is reported to have violated our terms and conditions will be banned," TheSugarBook spokesman Jessica Ong was quoted by The Malaysian Insight as saying today.
Ong was responding to a China Press report that TheSugarBook could be in trouble if the Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) received public complaints that the online service was being used to spread illegal content, such as pornography or images with nudity.
MCMC said enforcement authorities, such as police, could also take action if prostitution, blackmail or fraud were involved.
Ong said moderators worked around-the-clock to ensure the profile photos submitted by subscribers adhered to company guidelines. "We strictly do not allow any photo with nudity, violence or minors on our app," she said.
The app has attracted more than 20,000 sign-ups from users in Singapore within a year of its launch, Singapore online portal Today reported recently.
Singapore users make up the second biggest group of TheSugarBook's 75,000 members, behind Malaysia, where there are at least 28,500 users.
The rest are mainly from the Philippines, the United States, and India. Overall, three out of 10 users signed up as sugar daddies, of which 10% are in Singapore.
Both genders can sign up as sugar babies or sugar daddies/mommies, but the majority of its users in Singapore are young women aged between 19 and 33, including university students, the Today report said.