Failure to implement the curbs may result in sanctions or even a block on the platform, the ministry has said [File]

Failure to implement the curbs may result in sanctions or even a block on the platform, the ministry has said [File]
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

Indonesia summoned officials from Meta and Google over non-compliance with social media restrictions for children ​under 16 that went into full effect last week, ‌a minister said in a video statement published on ​Tuesday.

Indonesia requires social media companies ⁠with platforms it deems high risk to deactivate accounts belonging to children under 16, under a regulation that went into ‌effect last week.

Meutya Hafid, Indonesia’s Communications and Digital Minister, said Meta and Google are “two ‌business entities that are non-compliant with the law” ‌and ⁠that they were summoned on Monday to “undergo checks”.

Failure to implement the curbs may result in sanctions or even a block on the platform, the ministry has said.

Meutya ​said Google and ‌Meta had opposed the curbs from the very beginning.

Google and Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. Both companies said ‌last week they had put in place safeguards ​for children.

Roblox and TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance, are two other platforms deemed ⁠high risk by the ministry. Meutya said the ministry sent a warning to the two companies to be ‌fully compliant or risk being summoned. TikTok and Roblox did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Indonesia’s curbs, which the government says are intended to reduce the risk of cyberbullying and addiction, follow a ban in Australia last year over concerns about ‌social media’s potential harms to young people’s mental health.

The ​criteria for high-risk platforms include the possibility of talking to strangers, addictive qualities and psychological risks, ⁠the ministry said.

Internet penetration in Indonesia reached 80.66% ⁠in 2025, according to a survey by the Indonesia Internet Service Providers’ Association. The survey showed ‌it was 87.8% among “Gen Z” users aged 13 to 28.

There are about 70 million ​children under 16 in Indonesia, Meutya said.


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