Syed Azidi Syed Aziz, better known as Sheih Kickdefella, was arrested by police late Wednesday under the Sedition Act at his home in opposition-held northern Kelantan state, The Star daily reported.
"We were informed that the police were looking for us on Tuesday and waited for them but they didn't show up," his wife Bariah Ishak told the paper.
"We thought the worst was over but they came looking for him and so he surrendered," she added.
Syed Azidi, known for his links to the opposition conservative Islamic PAS party, had recently organised a nationwide Internet campaign to fly the Malaysian flag upside down in a sign of protest over the country's political and economic turmoil.
The campaign caused outrage in the conservative Muslim-led country, with Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi ordering a police investigation into the matter.
Yap Swee Seng, director of the rights group Voice of the Malaysian People (Suaram), condemned the arrest.
"It is a violation of freedom of expression. It is aimed to strike fear against those who criticise the government. It will have a chilling effect on bloggers and other Internet users.
"Clearly it is aimed to curtail dissent against the current leadership," he added.
Syed Azidi is the second blogger to get in trouble with Malaysian authorities over website content.
Prominent blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin, who has targeted government figures on his website, was arrested last Friday under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
Raja Petra, founder of the controversial Malaysia Today website, has already been charged with sedition and defamation after linking Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife to the sensational murder of a Mongolian woman.
Rights groups say about 63 people are being held under the ISA, which allows for renewable two-year periods of detention without trial and is normally used against suspected terrorists.
The act has also been used to lock up opponents of the government. Five Hindu rights activists were detained last year under it after mounting a protest against government race policies.
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