Fourth Most Populous Country in the World Bans Most Social Media for Kids
Source: Gizmodo
On Saturday, Indonesia started enforcing a sweeping ban on social media for kids under 16. According to the Associated Press, the law is expressly aimed at preventing youths from encountering “pornography, cyberbullying, online scams and addiction” online. The affected platforms are Roblox, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, and a video chat platform used in Southeast Asia called Bigo Live, the AP says.
It’s not a stretch to say this is far and away the most consequential ban of its type so far.
Indonesia, the fourth most populous country in the world, has an estimated 288 million people—and about 250 million of those are “mobile internet users” according to Statistia. If one fourth of the country is under 16 (and that’s a conservative estimate since about one fourth of the country was under 14 as of 2023), this law would directly impact 72 million people—which would be about 0.89% of the global population. Australia, famous for being the first country to pass a similar ban, has an estimated total population of 27.5 million across all ages.
Indonesia had already signaled that this ban was coming, announcing it at the beginning of this month. The government of Indonesia says it’s being phased in, rather than enforced wholesale all at once, the AP notes. However, Indonesian Minister of Digital Affairs Meutya Hafid told the AP, “There will be no compromise on compliance, and every business entity operating in Indonesia is required to comply with Indonesian law.”
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Read more: https://gizmodo.com/fourth-most-populous-country-in-the-world-bans-most-social-media-for-kids-2000739379
From the AP a few weeks ago, March 6:
https://apnews.com/article/indonesia-social-media-children-854305eeb97b34157586b51ce5c6a5dc
Hafid in a statement to media said that she just signed a government regulation that will mean children under the age of 16 can no longer have accounts on high-risk digital platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live and Roblox.
The implementation will start gradually from March 28, until all platforms fulfill their compliance obligations.
“The basis is clear. Our children face increasingly real threats. From exposure to pornography, cyberbullying, online fraud, and most importantly addiction. The government is here so that parents no longer have to fight alone against the giant of algorithms.” Hafid said.
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= new reply since forum marked as read
I don't see this ever happening in the US, we know that ship has already sailed here. But maybe it has a chance in Indonesia.
