Government Intensifies Monitoring of Government Websites, Preventing Online Gambling Content Infiltration
Jakarta – The government continues to tighten monitoring of government websites and social media accounts to prevent the infiltration of online gambling content (judol). Minister of Communication and Digital (Menkomdigi) Meutya Hafid emphasized that inactive government accounts must be closed immediately to avoid potential cyberattacks.
“There should be no inactive accounts. If there is a government account that is inactive, just close it,” Meutya stated at the Government Public Relations Training event at the Kemkomdigi Training Center, West Jakarta, on Wednesday (February 26). She added that poorly managed websites and accounts could become entry points for cybercriminals to insert illegal content, including promoting online gambling.
Meutya also revealed that government websites are often targeted by cyberattacks, including phishing attempts that could direct visitors to online gambling sites. “We must ensure that there are no government accounts that exist but are not well-managed, as they could become a source of problems,” she added.
This phenomenon is not new. In 2023, several government agency websites and social media accounts were hacked or infiltrated with gambling content. One of the victims was the Satudata Pertanian portal. According to data from the National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN), in 2022, 291 websites were suspected of being used for promoting online gambling. Of these, 68 were university websites, 38 were school websites, and 30 were government websites.
Cybersecurity expert and Director of CISSReC, Pratama Persadha, explained that the infiltration of gambling content on government websites is carried out using a mirroring technique. “This technique works by duplicating or creating a similar site on university and government websites,” he explained.
According to Pratama, there are two main reasons why cybercriminals target government websites. First, to prepare for the possibility of their main site being shut down by authorities. Second, websites of government and educational institutions are considered safer because their security systems are rarely checked regularly.
With the rise of such incidents, the government is committed to strengthening cybersecurity across all institutions. Meutya emphasized that ministries and agencies at both the central and regional levels must ensure that their digital communication assets are well-managed to prevent them from becoming targets of cybercrime.
