TikTok and YouTube have deactivated a total of around 4.7 million accounts belonging to Indonesian children since the country’s youth social media restrictions took effect in late March, the country’s communications and digital affairs minister said.
Speaking late last week, Meutya Hafid told the press that TikTok had deactivated 4.1 million accounts since the imposition of the ban, Reuters reported, while YouTube has deactivated some 600,000 accounts. She added that the ministry was currently checking the self-assessment reports submitted by the two companies, but that it wanted other big tech firms to follow.
“We’re not just delaying a child’s access, but we want behaviors from platforms to change, too,” Meutya said.
On March 28, Indonesia joined a growing cohort of nations in blocking children under the age of 16 from having accounts on “high-risk” digital platforms, which include YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, Bigo Live, and Roblox.
In announcing the measure in March, Meutya Hafid said that the restrictions were intended to safeguard children from online harms.
