Indonesia began implementing a government regulation on Saturday that bans children younger than 16 from accessing digital platforms the government says can expose them to harmful content and risky online behavior. The list of affected services includes major social media and gaming platforms, such as YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live and Roblox, as the country becomes the first in Southeast Asia to impose a blanket age-based ban for that age group.
Indonesia’s Communication and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Hafid said in announcing the rollout that the government had instructed digital platforms operating in Indonesia to bring their products, features and services into compliance. She said there would be “no compromise on compliance,” and added that every business entity operating in Indonesia was required to comply with Indonesian law. Hafid also said the restrictions would be implemented gradually until all platforms comply with the measure.
Hafid said the regulation, approved earlier this month, applies to around 70 million children in Indonesia, a country with a population of about 280 million. She described the government’s approach as risk-based, saying high-risk platforms were identified in part by how easily children could be exposed to strangers, potential predators, and harmful content generally, along with levels of risk related to exploitation and data-security scams.
Even with a phased rollout, Hafid acknowledged that implementation would be difficult. She said that getting digital platforms to comply and having them report deactivations of under-16 accounts would not be easy, but argued that the government must proceed anyway. “This is certainly a task. But we must take steps to save our children,” she said.
The regulation comes amid a broader push in the region to limit children’s exposure to social media content. In Australia, similar restrictions began last year, with social media companies revoking access to accounts identified as belonging to children; the Indonesian rule follows that approach. Other countries have also moved or considered steps to restrict children’s access as concern grows about harms tied to unregulated social media content.
For children who use social media and online games now, the change is likely to be felt quickly in daily routines even if enforcement is gradual. Maura Munthe, 13, said she spends roughly four hours a day on her phone on social media and playing games on Roblox with friends. She said she feels “kind of 50-50” about the policy but mostly agrees with it, adding that peers worry they will miss out on the fun and entertainment they have access to; she said she may instead play more games alone or just hang out with friends.
Munthe’s mother, Leni Sinuraya, said she has trusted her daughter to use her phone in ways she considers wise for years, including for studying and playing online games. Still, Sinuraya said the government’s move is “good for all children in Indonesia,” arguing that parents have lost control and that social media platforms have taken over. She pointed to family mealtimes, saying phones in front of children at restaurants show they are “addicted,” and that “Mealtime is supposed to be a time for us to chat with the people around us.”
Advocates for online child safety also said restrictions could come with practical challenges for parents and children. Diena Haryana, who founded the Semai Jiwa Amini foundation (also known as SEJIWA) in Jakarta, said studies have shown social media use can affect children’s mental health and trigger anxiety and depression. She said, however, that digital platforms can offer benefits and learning opportunities, and her foundation has tried to encourage parents and communities to provide guidance and supervision.
Haryana said the effects of restricting access to social media for children under 16 would only be seen once the measure is in place, and she predicted complaints from children and confusion among parents. She said parents and schools were expected to provide solutions for children to learn in the real world rather than online, and added that “plenty” of activities exist for children to explore outside digital platforms.
So far, some platforms have responded to the regulation in public statements, though few have indicated how quickly they will implement changes. Elon Musk’s X, on its Indonesia Online Safety Information page, says 16 is the minimum age required for users in the country and wrote that it is “not our choice” but what Indonesian law requires. Google-owned YouTube said it supports the government’s effort to create a risk-based framework aimed at addressing online harms while preserving access to information, saying it is “ready to engage” under a self-assessment approach. TikTok said it would take steps in line with regulatory expectations, continue strengthening safeguards and engage with the ministry’s self-assessment process, expecting the regulation to be applied “fairly and consistently across all social platforms.”
Other countries have also taken steps to limit children’s access to digital platforms, including through phased or account-revocation approaches. As Indonesia begins enforcement under its new regulation, the immediate challenge for the government and companies is to translate the policy into functioning age restrictions and to document the deactivation of accounts held by children under 16.