A video of a Malaysian man slapping a woman, allegedly for not wearing a headscarf has gone viral.

In the video, the man is seen berating a group of women seated at a bus stop, believed to be in Penang.

The man then targets one of the women and asks her about her religion and questions her attire.

The woman is dressed in black and has light brown hair.

He loudly scolds her while she tries to ignore him and uses her phone.

He then suddenly slaps her across the face before she jumps off the bus stop seat and confronts him.

He does not appear fazed and tries to approach her again.

A woman wearing a baju kurung and headscarf comes between the man and the victim to protect her.

Netizens have condemned the man's actions, including Malaysian actress Noor Neelofa Mohd Noor.

She wrote in an Instagram post, "So, this is on a UK news portal. Is this how we want other non-Muslim countries to see us? Muslim Malaysians in this light? Is this how we want to portray Islam and Malaysia?"

She went on:

“Ladies, when things like this happen to you or your loved ones, you have to stand up. Don’t let people like this belittle you and treat you inhumanely.

“And guys, please, don’t do this to other women.”