TikTok and Youtube Want to Comply with PP Tunas, Talks Begin

JAKARTA - TikTok and the YouTube video platform are in discussions with the Indonesian government regarding plans to block access to social media for children under the age of 16, which will begin later this month, company officials said on Monday, March 9.

Indonesia will require platforms to disable "high-risk" social media accounts belonging to users under the age of 16, according to new ministerial regulations circulated on Monday.

Roblox, Instagram, Google's YouTube, and TikTok owned by China's ByteDance were among the platforms identified by the Ministry of Communication and Digital as high-risk last week.

YouTube said it was reviewing the new regulations to ensure that it empowered parents while maintaining access to learning for millions of Indonesians. "We will continue to interact constructively with the government and remain committed to protecting young people in the digital world, not protecting them from the digital world," said a YouTube spokesperson.

TikTok said it was "in dialogue with the ministry to better understand the provisions" of the new regulations. A TikTok spokesperson added that TikTok's teen accounts were equipped with more than 50 pre-set safety, privacy, and security features.

"The deactivation of the account will be effective starting March 28," said Meutya Hafid, Minister of Communication and Digital.

Before the regulation was released, Meta - which owns Instagram and Facebook - responded on Friday that "governments considering bans should be careful not to drive teens to less secure and unregulated sites, or to a logged-out experience that bypasses important protections." Meta added that there are already default protections for teen accounts on Instagram and Facebook.

Several governments around the world, including Australia, have imposed social media restrictions on children amid growing concerns about the safety and mental health of underage users.

This policy is part of the Indonesian government's efforts to protect children from various digital risks such as pornography, cyberbullying, online fraud, and digital addiction, with a gradual implementation starting from the end of March 2026 on high-risk platforms.