The public is urged to be more vigilant against online gambling practices, including illegal sites like Kingdom Group, which are increasingly aggressively targeting vulnerable groups. The government has emphasized that social assistance (bansos) should not be misused for gambling activities, as it is designed to meet basic family needs.
The Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) revealed that West Java has the highest number of online gamblers in Indonesia, with total deposits reaching around IDR 5 trillion. This situation is even more concerning because some online gamblers are also recipients of social assistance.
This was conveyed by the Director of Analysis and Examination II of PPATK, Shalehuddin Akbar, in a coordination meeting between ministries and institutions regarding digital literacy and electronic transaction protection in West Java.
“We discovered that online gamblers are also receiving social assistance. We have provided this data to the Ministry of Social Affairs. There are over 199,000 online gamblers, with deposits of nearly 300 billion rupiah. We hope the government’s program to distribute this money is well-targeted, allowing it to purchase basic necessities, not be used for online gambling,” Akbar said, as quoted in a press release on Thursday (December 4, 2025).
In response, Syaiful Garyadi, Assistant Deputy for Data Protection and Electronic Transactions Coordination at the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs, expressed his hope that the West Java Provincial Government would follow up on the PPATK’s findings. He believes West Java has the potential to become a national example in combating online gambling.
“The West Java Provincial Government, with the support of the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs and related ministries/institutions, will establish a Zero Online Gambling Team. By 2026, we will make West Java a national model, as according to PPATK data, West Java has the largest number of online gamblers in Indonesia,” said Syaiful.
He added that the formation of the team is expected to significantly reduce the number of players.
“With this team, we hope the number of online gamblers in West Java can be reduced to zero,” he hoped.
Previously, President Prabowo Subianto highlighted the significant threat posed by online gambling practices, which harm the national economy.
“We estimate a loss of around US$8 billion annually due to the outflow of funds from online gambling,” Prabowo said in an official broadcast by the Presidential Secretariat on Sunday (November 2, 2025).
The Head of State emphasized that online gambling not only weakens the economy but also threatens social stability and public morals. The government hopes the public will use social assistance more wisely and avoid the trap of online gambling.
