Indonesian govt gives Meta 24h to remove online gambling content

Meta has been warned by Budi Arie Setiadi, the Indonesian minister of communication and information, to remove online gambling content from its platforms including Facebook and Instagram.

This includes content that supports, facilitates or promotes online gambling or slot gambling activities.

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The minister had previously sent a warning letter to Meta on 2 October 2023 but still found various kinds of gambling content on Meta’s platforms. He added that the matter would be taken up by law enforcement officials if there was no follow-up on the matter.

If Meta fails to remove the online gambling content from its platforms, the company will be subject to sanctions in accordance with Indonesia‘s laws that prohibit electronic systems from containing and facilitating gambling activities.

While Meta has encountered issues with its online gambling content, the company had to recently shut down 7,704 Facebook accounts, 954 Pages, 15 Groups and 15 Instagram accounts for violating its policy against coordinated inauthentic behavior. According to its report, the Facebook and Instagram accounts were associated with a Chinese political spam network that targeted users in other parts of the world. Meta claimed that investigations found links to individuals associated with Chinese law enforcement.

The content included positive commentary about China and its province Xinjiang and criticisms of the United States, Western foreign policies, and critics of the Chinese government including journalists and researchers.  Coined as a “Spamouflage”, Meta said these accounts were part of what appears to be the largest known cross-platform covert influence operation in the world. Investigations first began in 2019. 

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