Kuala Lumpur, Aug 9 - Malaysia plans to introduce a 'filtering system' on Internet to cleanse it of pornography, but the authorities have been cautioned against censoring political content.

Confirmation about the government's plan came Saturday from Information, Communications and Culture Minister Rais Yatim who said only the pornographic content will be curbed, The Star said Sunday.

The country's long-time former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad reacted soon after, saying there was no need to censor political content on the Internet.

Mahathir acknowledged, however, that there was 'too much filth and violence' on the Internet and that it should be vetted by the government.

Internet content, both pornography and politics, is a major issue in Malaysia. The government has not taken kindly to attacks on people who are in public life.

Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has himself been targeted.