Indonesia has introduced extensive plans to regulate social media use by minors. Government representatives announced on Friday that access to these platforms should be denied or severely restricted for young people under 16 in the future.
The measure is justified by the need to protect mental health, prevent cyberbullying, and limit contact with inappropriate content.
The implementation of this plan requires platform operators such as TikTok, Instagram, or X (formerly Twitter) to introduce stricter mechanisms for age verification. Technical solutions like checking against state databases or using biometric procedures are under discussion.
Companies could face significant fines or, in extreme cases, network blocks if they do not comply with the new regulations. With this step, Indonesia is following similar efforts in other countries, such as Australia, which has already legally established a minimum age of 16 for using social services.
However, critics point out that flawless control is technically difficult to achieve and that young people might find ways to bypass the restrictions using VPN services. A precise timeline for when the new rule will come into effect in Indonesia is currently still pending.
