Indonesia began on Saturday to implement a new government law passed earlier this month that bans children under 16 from accessing digital platforms that could expose them to pornography, cyberbullying, fraud, and internet addiction. With this move, Indonesia becomes the first country in Southeast Asia to ban children from having accounts on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Be Live, and Roblox. This comes after measures taken by Australia last year, which became the world's first ban on social media for children as part of a campaign for families to regain power from tech giants and protect their teenage children. Indonesia said the restrictions would be phased in until all platforms comply with the measure. When the new law was announced in March, Indonesia's Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs, Muthia Khafiz, said it would apply to about 70 million children in Indonesia, which has a population of around 280 million.
