Indonesia bans social media for children under 16

Indonesia has implemented a new law that prohibits children under 16 years old from accessing main social media platforms. The law applies to X, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Threads, Bigo Live and Roblox.

The rule was adopted in early March and is being enforced gradually. Indonesia has become the first Southeast Asian country to enforce such a regulation following Australia's social media ban for children last year.

Some platforms have already taken action. X, which was known as Twitter, will deactivate all accounts that belong to users who are younger than 16. Roblox plans to introduce an offline mode for children under 13. TikTok confirmed it will comply with the new regulation. Bigo Live has fully implemented the law, the government said.

YouTube declared its support for Indonesian government initiatives which aim to safeguard children while maintaining educational content accessibility.

According to the country's Communication and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid, the Indonesian government will monitor platform compliance. She accepted enforcement of the rule as a difficult task which she deemed necessary to safeguard children.

The regulation affects approximately 70 million children in Indonesia, which has a total population of 280 million people. Authorities plan to ensure platforms deactivate accounts and report compliance regularly.

Children are also confused about the ban. Maura Munthe, a 13-year-old girl, stated that she was 50-50 about the ban but agreed with it. There is a forecast that there will be a period of adjustment for children and their parents to get used to the ban.

Other countries, including Spain, France, and the UK, are considering enforcing a ban on children’s use of social media platforms.