Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid (center) is accompanied by deputy ministers Nezar Patria (left) and Angga Raka Prabowo (right) during a working meeting with House of Representatives’ Commission I at the House of Representatives building in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on November 5, 2024. (Antara/Dhemas Reviyanto)

Indonesia planning minimum age limit for social media users, minister says

JAKARTA (The Jakarta post/Ann) -- The government plans to issue a regulation to set a minimum age for users of social media, a move aimed at protecting children in digital space, its communications minister has said.
Communications and Digital Ministry is preparing a regulation to ban social media use for certain ages, Minister Meutya Hafid said on Monday. She did not say what the age limit would be. Meutya did not say what the minimum age would be in Indonesia. Her remarks, made late on Monday, came after Meutya discussed the plan with President Prabowo Subianto. 
“We discussed how to protect children in digital space,” she said in a video uploaded on the YouTube channel of the president’s office.  “The president said to carry on with this plan. He is very supportive on how this kind of child protection will be done in our digital space,” she said.
Internet penetration in Indonesia, a country of about 280 million people, reached 79.5 percent last year, according to a survey of 8,700 people by the Indonesia internet service providers’ association.
The survey showed 48 percent of children under 12 had access to the internet, with some respondents of that age group using Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. The survey showed internet penetration was 87 percent among “Gen Z” users, or those age 12 to 27.
Late last year, Australia passed a landmark law banning social media companies from signing up under-16s. The legislation, approved by parliament in November, orders social media firms to take “reasonable steps” to prevent young teens from having accounts.
It is due to come into effect after a year. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the age limit may not be implemented perfectly -- much like existing restrictions on alcohol -- but it was “the right thing to do”. The crackdown on sites like Facebook, Instagram and X would lead to “better outcomes and less harm for young Australians”, he told reporters. Singapore has also considered in legislating age limits for social media access to protect young users.

(Latest Update January 17, 2025)