Tim Alper is a journalist who covers betting news and regulation for CasinoBeats. He joined the CasinoBeats team in May 2025. He reports on breaking news and developments in the world of betting, casinos, and...
Read Full BioThe Indonesian government says that malicious live streamers linked to online gambling are spreading “misinformation” on TikTok and other video-sharing platforms.
The comments come from Meutya Hafid, the head of the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, the media outlets CNN Indonesia and RCTI Plus reported.
The minister said the government has received numerous reports from the public regarding online “provocations.”
She claimed that these were particularly prominent among several unnamed TikTok Live broadcasts.
The government says some streamers have called on their viewers to riot and loot. They have also allegedly promoted acts of violence and spread racial and ethnic hatred.
Indonesian TikTok Crackdown Incoming?
Meutya expressed concern about what she called the “rapid spread of misinformation in the digital space.” This, she said, could drown out accurate information, including constructive input and criticism.
Meutya explained: “We have discovered that streamers were spreading misinformation, both intentionally and unintentionally, at a very high rate. It is like a flash flood that is drowning out correct information, input, constructive criticism, and productive activities.”
The minister said that her department has “discovered an organized effort to use social media as a means of provocation.”
Meutya added that there was evidence of “significant funding flowing through digital platforms” linked to the streamers in question.
The origin of these funds, she said, appears to come from the online gambling platforms Jakarta is now busy trying to stamp out.
She said streamers received “large donations or gifts” during their live broadcasts. Many of these donations, Meutya claimed, are connected to online gambling networks, “and made in the platforms’ names.”
Online Gambling Operators ‘Donated to Troublemaking Streamers’
Meutya explained: “Violent and anarchic content was live-streamed and monetized through donations and high-value gifts. Several of the accounts involved are connected to online gambling networks.”
The Minister of Communication and Information urged the Indonesian public to remain cautious. She asked citizens not to “spread unverified information” and instead use “trusted sources.”
Such sources, she claimed, include major media outlets that “adhere to a journalistic code of ethics.”
Meutya concluded: “The digital space belongs to us all. Let’s keep it healthy and safe. And let’s ensure people who seek to divide us do not succeed.”
The Indonesian government’s war on online casinos has continued to intensify this year. Police have shut down dozens of domestic gambling platforms, with operators handed multi-year jail terms.
Courts in Jakarta are also in the process of sentencing dozens of individuals who have been convicted of operating a protection racket for online gambling operators.
Several of the defendants are former members of the government agency that blacklists the URLs of illegal gambling websites.
