Indonesia begins enforcing social media restrictions for children under-16s

Indonesia on Saturday began implementing a new government regulation approved earlier this month that bans children younger than 16 from access to digital platforms that could expose them to pornography, cyberbullying, online scams and addiction.

With the move, Indonesia became the first country in Southeast Asia to ban children from having accounts on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live and Roblox. It follows measures that Australia took last year in a world-first social media ban for children as part of a push for families to take back power from tech giants and protect their teens.

Indonesia has said that the implementation of the restrictions would be carried out gradually, until all platforms comply with the measure.

700 MILLION CHILDREN

"The government has instructed all digital platforms operating in Indonesia to immediately bring their products, features and services into compliance with applicable regulations. There will be no compromise on compliance, and every business entity operating in Indonesia is required to comply with Indonesian law,” Indonesia’s Communication and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid said on Friday evening.

Children play online games against each other on smartphones and tablets along an alley in Jakarta on Friday. AFP

In announcing the new regulation earlier in March, she said that this regulation would apply to around 70 million children in Indonesia - a country with a population of about 280 million.

Hafid said high-risk digital platforms are identified by factors such as how easy it is for children to become exposed to strangers, potential predators and harmful content in general, as well as the levels of risk of exploitation and data security scams.

But she acknowledged that implementing the new regulation — even gradually as planned — will be difficult. Getting digital platforms to comply and then making them report deactivations of under-16 accounts is difficult.

"This is certainly a task. But we must take steps to save our children," Hafid said. "It’s not easy. Nevertheless, we must see it through.”

Affan Haritsah, 11 and Kevin Prince, 14, play games on their phones, on the outskirts of Jakarta on Saturday. Reuters

Maura Munthe, a 13-year-old who spends roughly four hours a day on her phone on social media, including playing games on Roblox with her friends, said she feels "kind of 50-50” about the new government policy but mostly agrees with it.

Her peers in school, she says, worry they will miss out on all the fun and entertainment they now have access to.

"There are always other games on my phone, not only the online ones," she said. "I will likely play more games alone or just hang out with my friends.”

PARENTS LAUD MOVE

Munthe's mother, Leni Sinuraya, 47, said she has for years trusted her daughter to use her phone wisely, both when studying and when playing online games. Still, she sees the government's move as good for all children in Indonesia.

Parents, she says, have lost control — and social media platforms have taken over.

"Nowadays, when we see kids sitting in a restaurant, they have a phone right in front of them. It’s clear that they’re addicted," Sinuraya said. "They won’t eat unless they’re given a phone, and they throw a tantrum if they aren’t.”

15-year-old girls use their smartphones on a street in Jakarta. AFP

"Mealtime is supposed to be a time for us to chat with the people around us,” she added.

Based in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital, Diena Haryana founded Semai Jiwa Amini foundation - also known as SEJIWA, a nonprofit that works on online child safety and protection.

According to Haryana, studies have shown that children’s use of social media can impact their mental health and trigger anxiety and depression.

But, she says, digital platforms also offer advantages and open up a whole realm of learning. Her foundation has tried to get parents and communities to work together on providing guidance and supervision for children in the online world.

"We also need to remember that they need to learn to use this digital technology at the right time, at the right age, and with the right guidance as well,” she said.

Haryana said the effects of restricting access to social media and digital platforms to children under 16 will only be seen once the measure is in place - she predicted both complaints from children and confusion among parents.

Parents and schools are expected to provide children with solutions on how to learn in the real world - not the digital one, she said.

A 15-year-old boy (2nd R) uses his smartphone with his older friends in Jakarta. AFP

"Of course, this takes time to get used to, which is why parents and schools need to encourage children to engage with the real world and make it fun for them," Haryana added. "And there’s plenty in the real world for children to explore.”

So far, few platforms have reacted to Indonesia's new regulation.

Elon Musk’s X on its Indonesia Online Safety Information page gives 16 as the minimum age required for users in the country. "It’s not our choice - it’s what Indonesian law requires,” the page says.

Google-owned YouTube said it supports the Indonesian government's effort to create an effective, risk-based framework that addresses online harms while preserving access to information and digital opportunity.

"We are ready to engage under the regulation’s self-assessment approach to demonstrate our long-standing safety rigor,” it said.

TikTok on its newsroom page said that it will take the necessary steps in line with regulatory expectations and continue to strengthen the safeguards, as well as keep Indonesian community in the platform informed as further guidance becomes available.

An 11-year-old girl (R) uses her smartphone after eating lunch with her family at a noodle restaurant in Jakarta. AFP

"We will continue to engage constructively with The Communication and Digital Affairs Ministry in the self-assessment process, and expect that the regulation will be applied fairly and consistently across all social platforms,” it said.

Restrictions on social media access for children under 16 first began in December in Australia, where social media companies revoked access to about 4.7 million accounts identified as belonging to children.

Some other countries - including Spain, France and the United Kingdom - are also taking or considering measures to restrict children's access to social media amid growing concern that they are being harmed by exposure to unregulated social media content.

Associated Press