According to Budi Arie Setiadi, Minister of Communication, Indonesia has succeeded in blocking around 2,495,150 online gambling content. This was accomplished in almost a year.
He said in a recent statement from his office that they have taken down 2,945,150 online gambling content. This action took place from July 17, 2023, to June 13, 2024.
The ministry carried out the elimination of online gambling content to prevent its negative impacts on society.
Budi said they have also submitted a proposal to Bank Indonesia. The proposal is to close around 555 e-wallet accounts related to online gambling activities.
He said the request to block 5,779 bank accounts related to online gambling has been ongoing. This process has been in place from September 18, 2023, to May 28, 2024. This request was made to the Financial Services Authority, or OJK.
The ministry handled 16,596 gambling page inserts on educational sites from July 17, 2023 to June 13, 2024. During the same period, they also managed 18,974 gambling page inserts on government sites.
It has also sent a warning letter to digital platforms which unprincipled individuals widely use to spread these sites. The digital platforms include X (formerly Twitter), Telegram, Google, Meta, and Tiktok.
Budi said that they will fine digital platform managers up to 400 million rupiahs (US$29,000) per content. This penalty applies if they do not cooperate in eradicating online gambling.
The ministry continues to wipe out online gambling because of its huge negative impact on society. Online gambling affects economic, social, and even psychological aspects. This resulted in quite a few fatalities.
He said the ministry has explored technology adoption from Google. They are utilizing AI, or Artificial Intelligence, in removing online gambling sites. This is to accelerate the processing of online gambling content reports to become more effective and efficient.
The ministry is terminating access to prevent the dissemination of content prohibited by statutory regulations. It is in accordance with the provisions of Law Number 1 of 2024. This law is the Second Amendment to Law Number 11 of 2008.
