[2] This population inhabits the southern and central parts of the Malay Peninsula, and has been classified as critically endangered.

[6] Panthera tigris corbetti was proposed by Vratislav Mazák in 1968 for the tiger subspecies in Southeast Asia.

[7][8] Panthera tigris jacksoni was proposed in 2004 as a subspecies as a genetic analysis indicated differences in mtDNA and micro-satellite sequences to P. t.

[2] However, a genetic study published in 2018 supported six monophyletic clades based on whole-genome sequencing analysis of 32 specimens.

[13][14] There is no clear difference between the Malayan and the Indochinese tigers, when specimens from the two regions are compared cranially or in pelage.

[19] In September 2014, two conservation organisations announced that camera trap surveys in seven sites in three separate habitats from 2010 to 2013 had produced an estimate of the surviving population of 250–340 individuals, with a few additional isolated small pockets probable.

The decline meant that the population might have to be moved to the "Critically Endangered" category in the IUCN Red List.

[20] As of 2019, poaching and depletion of prey has caused the tiger population in Belum-Temengor Forest Reserve to decline about 60% over a period of 7–8 years, from approximately 60 to 23.

Nearly 64,800 km2 (25,000 sq mi) was converted to large-scale industrial plantations, primarily for palm oil production.

[27] The demand for tiger body parts used in Chinese traditional medicine apparently also attracts poachers from Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia.

[30] In order to deter poaching, they organize "Cat Walks", a citizen patrol in danger zones.

[34] In Emilio Salgari's cycle of novels on the 19th century fictional pirate Sandokan, the protagonist is known as "The Tiger of Malaysia".