Indonesia ponders one-account-per-platform rule for social media

A common problem with regulations is that of adaptation. A country enacts a law that restricts social media accounts to users 16 years or older and requires proof of age. Another country, with different values and politics, likes the spirit of the law, but doesn’t think it goes far enough. Witness Indonesia, which has tabled a proposal to limit Indonesians to just one account per social media platform – stirring up fears that stricter controls could lead to crackdowns on dissent and a curtailment of civil liberties.

The South China Morning Post quotes Bambang Haryadi, a senior figure in President Prabowo Subianto’s Gerindra party: “We believe that in the future, an integrated single account is also needed, so that each citizen can only have one account on each social media platform. This is not limiting democracy, but we must make it clear that in the future, freedom of using social media will not be used as a means to carry out negative framing of individuals or institutions.”

“To prevent the proliferation of fake accounts, strict evaluation and verification are necessary to prevent other people’s data from being used to create anonymous accounts.” Face and fingerprint biometrics have been floated as a potential verification method.

Vice-minister of communications Nezar Patria offers a variant on the idea: “One person can have a second or third account, as long as authentication and verification are clear and linked to a single official ID card.”

The proposal walks a tightrope between preventing identity fraud and enabling oppression. It’s easy to see how “negative framing of individuals or institutions” could be interpreted as permission to silence critics.

Hafizh Nabiyyin, head of the freedom of expression division at Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network, or Safenet, says it is evidence of “an authoritarian and anti-democracy mindset” in the current government, reflective of similar developments in Vietnam, where citizens wishing to use social media must to verify their identity.

“The government will request personal data, whether it’s a national identification number or other personal data, so our social media activity can be tracked. Ultimately, this privacy violation will impact our freedom of expression.”

“Ultimately, if privacy is not guaranteed, freedom of expression will also be threatened. The public will become increasingly afraid to voice their opinions due to the risks of surveillance and legal action.”

Hafizh wants the government to push platforms to be “more assertive and effective in enforcing their content moderation systems.”

Since pornography is illegal in Indonesia, the age assurance debate has largely been framed as a question of preventing child sexual abuse and exploitation. Its proposed legislation is focused on regulating sites that are specifically intended for children – rather than on sites that wish to block children’s access to adult material.

Article Topics

biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  digital identity  |  identity verification  |  Indonesia  |  social media