Government Tightens Regulations to Combat Online Gambling
Jakarta – The government continues to tighten regulations to suppress the rampant online gambling in Indonesia.
One of the steps being pushed is tightening regulations related to prepaid SIM cards and passport making which are often exploited by online gamblers.
This effort is made to close loopholes that are often exploited in these illegal practices.
Member of Commission I of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Sumail Abdullah, highlighted the ease of obtaining prepaid SIM cards without strict identity verification as one of the main factors in the development of online gambling.
He emphasized that the circulation of prepaid SIM cards that can be purchased with fake data must be tightened.
“Many other people’s identities are misused for online gambling. If the SIM card registration system is tightened, then the freedom of movement of online gamblers can be limited,” he said.
In addition, he also highlighted cellular operators who are considered to prioritize profits over helping to eradicate online gambling.
The Ministry of Communication and Digital (Kemkomdigi) continues to block online gambling sites and applications.
The Director General of Digital Space Supervision of the Ministry of Communication and Information, Alexander Sabar, revealed that from 2017 to January 2025, his party has handled more than five million online gambling content.
“From 2017 to January 21, 2025, the Ministry of Communication and Information has handled 5,707,952 online gambling content,” he said.
The majority of this content is spread on social media, especially the X platform.
In addition to blocking, the government is also collaborating with various digital platforms to increase supervision and accelerate the removal of content related to online gambling.
The Ministry of Communication and Information is also working with law enforcement officers to take action against perpetrators who are still trying to spread gambling sites.
The government is also tightening the issuance of passports to limit the mobility of online gamblers.
Head of the Immigration Directorate General of the Ministry of Communication and Information, Novan Indriyanto, emphasized that his party is more selective towards passport applicants who want to travel to countries such as Cambodia, which is known as the center of illegal online gambling activities.
“If there are applicants who want to travel to countries with many online gambling players, we will be more careful in verifying,” he said.
With these steps, the government hopes to be able to suppress online gambling practices more effectively and protect the public from its negative impacts. This step is expected to provide a deterrent effect for the perpetrators and narrow the scope of online gambling networks in Indonesia.
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