TikTok Taboo: Indonesia Issues Instant Intervention
Indonesia has suspended TikTok’s registration as an electronic system provider for failing to provide complete information related to its live-streaming feature, although users in the country were still able to access the app as of Friday, Reuters reported.
Alexander Sabar, an official from Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, stated that during recent nationwide protests, certain accounts were linked to online gambling and were generating revenue using TikTok’s live-streaming feature.
From late August through September, widespread demonstrations erupted across Indonesia against additional allowances for parliament members and police brutality. During this period, TikTok temporarily disabled its live feature, citing the need to “keep TikTok safe and proper.”
The government subsequently requested data from the company regarding traffic, streaming, and financial transactions. However, TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, provided only partial information, citing internal policy, Sabar said.
He added, “The Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs considers TikTok to have violated its obligations as a private electronic service provider, and therefore has suspended its registration.”
Under Indonesian regulations, all companies operating in the country must provide relevant information to the government for oversight, or risk suspension of their services. TikTok has more than 100 million active accounts in Indonesia.
