Indonesian Ministry Threatens to Block Telegram Over Online Gambling
- Cashcash Pro
Jakarta – The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (Kemenkominfo) has issued a third warning letter to the Telegram platform to close access to online gambling content on its service.
Nezar Patria as Deputy Minister of Communication and Information Technology stated that if the warning isn't properly responded, the Ministry will block access to the platform.
"If they don't respond, it will be blocked; if they comply, there is no reason to block it," said Patria in Jakarta on Wednesday (June 26).
According to him, in overseeing Electronic System Providers (PSE), his party consistently follows the prevailing laws and regulations.
If a platform is found to be non-compliant with the regulations in Indonesia, it must be dealt with in accordance with the applicable provisions.
It's known that Telegram still provides access to online gambling operators, which are currently restricted by the Indonesian government.
Telegram.
- Telegram
Thus, in accordance with the regulations, the government has sent a summons to Telegram to provide clarification.
However, until the second letter was issued last Friday (June 14), there had been no official response from Telegram.
"If there's no response, we will block it. We have blocked Telegram in 2017 due to radicalism. We blocked it, then its owner met the Communication Minister at that time, Mr. Rudiantara. He stated that they would filter their content," Patria stressed.
He continued, "Hopefully, we won't have to block it for second time,"
As information, the communication ministry will impose a fine of IDR 500 million per content if a digital platform is found to allow the circulation of online gambling.
This fine applies to all digital platforms, including X, Telegram, Google, Meta, and TikTok.
From November 7, 2023, to May 22, 2024, there were 20,241 keywords related to online gambling found on Google.
Additionally, there were 2,702 keywords related to online gambling found on Meta's social network from December 15, 2022, to May 22, 2024.
