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Indonesia is aiming to become the latest country to ban social media and other popular online platforms for children under 16, citing protecting young people from online abuse.
Meutya Hafid, the country's communications and digital affairs minister, announced that accounts for under 16s on "high-risk" platforms would be deactivated from March 28.
"This will start with platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live, and Roblox," said Hafid, sharing that the restriction would make Indonesia "the first non-Western country" to introduce such a ban.
He added, "Our children are facing increasingly real threats—ranging from exposure to pornography, cyberbullying, and online scams, to addiction, which is the most significant concern."
As per a 2023 report by UNICEF, roughly half of the 510 Indonesian children it surveyed had been exposed to sexual images on social media.
Moreover, Indonesia's child protection agency said it could not comment on the government's plans until properly reviewing them.
The announcement came after Australia became the first country to start forcing social media firms to block users under 16 from having accounts on their platforms in December.
Critics have called on the Australian government to extend the ban to cover online gaming sites like Roblox and Discord, which are not currently included.
Spain is among other countries that have said they will follow Australia's footsteps.
Indonesia has previously taken steps to prevent access to sexually explicit material online, including blocking access to the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Grok.
Notably, pornographic sites such as Pornhub and OnlyFans are also banned in the country.
