Indonesia’s communications minister, Meutya Hafid, announced that social media companies TikTok and YouTube have deactivated around 4.7 million accounts belonging to children under the age of 16 in the country.

Background

This move follows a regulation issued by Indonesia in March, which requires social media companies to deactivate accounts belonging to children under 16. The regulation aims to reduce the risk of cyberbullying and addiction among minors.

TikTok, developed by Chinese technology company ByteDance, has deactivated 4.1 million accounts, while Alphabet’s Google’s video platform YouTube has deactivated 600,000 accounts. The ministry is currently checking self-assessment reports by the companies to ensure compliance with the regulation.

Indonesia’s curbs on social media companies are part of a broader effort to protect minors from the potential harm of social media. The country’s move is being closely watched by other nations, including Australia, which has also implemented restrictions on social media use among minors.

Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.