The Government Strengthens Online Gambling Monitoring Strategy to Protect Children from Digital Threats
Jakarta – Minister of Communication and Digital, Meutya Hafid, emphasized that the government continues to strengthen digital surveillance measures to address the threat of cybercrime, including online gambling, which is increasingly targeting vulnerable groups such as children and adolescents.
This affirmation was conveyed in a working meeting with Commission I of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI), where Meutya explained that Indonesia’s digital ecosystem requires a stronger regulatory foundation to be able to address the rapidly evolving complexity of risks.
According to Meutya, there are two biggest challenges that are currently prominent: the strong flow of disinformation and the rise of digital crimes that exploit people’s unpreparedness to interact in cyberspace.
Online gambling, digital fraud, child exploitation, and information manipulation are real threats that can have long-term social and economic impacts.
To address these challenges, the Ministry of Communication and Digital is focusing on three main pillars: strengthening regulations, developing public communication networks, and improving the quality of human resources and the community’s digital literacy.
These three aspects are designed to strengthen national digital resilience, including protecting children from exposure to harmful content and illegal technology-based activities.
Through various regulations, digital platforms are required to implement age verification technology so that children under a certain age cannot freely create accounts.
“Once again, this regulation essentially ensures that electronic system providers technically do not allow children of a certain age to enter their PSE domain,” Meutya emphasized.
The government’s efforts to eradicate online gambling are also strengthened through cross-agency synergy. Deputy Minister of Communication and Digital, Nezar Patria, emphasized that Komdigi’s intervention, along with the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), the Financial Services Authority (OJK), Bank Indonesia, and the Indonesian National Police, aims to drastically reduce online gambling fund circulation.
“Online gambling poses a serious threat to social and economic stability. We often hear of online gambling victims committing crimes out of desperation after experiencing losses,” said Nezar.
Furthermore, the government is also concerned about the high risk of online gambling for the younger generation. Deputy Chairman of Commission IV of the East Kalimantan Regional People’s Representative Council (DPRD), Andi Satya Adi Saputra, even called online gambling part of the “three online plagues,” along with drugs and pornography.
He emphasized that online gambling addiction can create psychological dependence that is no less severe than drugs.
“Online gambling is addictive. Win once, and you want to win again. Even if you lose, you still want to win again,” he said.
By strengthening regulations, digital literacy, and inter-agency collaboration, the government hopes that the public—especially children and adolescents—will receive optimal protection from digital threats.
