Indonesia started imposing a countrywide ban on social media usage among children under 16 on 28th March, and the officials threatened tech companies that there is “no room  for compromise.”

The Southeast Asian country announced the measure at the beginning of the month with reference to the increasing concerns about online pornography, cyberbullying and internet addiction among the underage population.

Communications Minister Meutya Hafid stated that the platforms will have to fully conform to the new regulations or be punished.

Rules change platforms to meet new rules

Hafid claimed that X and Bigo Live already set their minimum user age according to the regulation, whereas other sites were encouraged to do so now.

She restated, “there is no compromise when it comes to compliance and that all the companies that conduct business in Indonesia have to abide by the national laws.”

TikTok responded by stating that it is cooperating with the government and making efforts to solve the problem of under-16 accounts in its compliance measures.

One of the rising international movements

The action by Indonesia is part of a larger trend among the global community to restrict the use of social media among children.

Australia had proposed similar restrictions in December, and lawmakers in the UK have also supported the idea of banning underage minors from social sites.

This has also been taken to the court in the United States, where a jury in Los Angeles recently ruled that major platforms are responsible for harm associated with the “addictive design” of their services.

The events put emphasis on the growing worldwide suspicion of tech firms as governments consider enforcing more stringent protections on young users.