Children spending too much time on gadgets risk losing social interaction abilities
BEKASI — Children spending excessive time using gadgets risk developing digital dependency that could affect their psychological and social development.
Pratama Persadha, a cybersecurity observer and Chairman of the Communication and Information System Security Research Center (CISSReC), stated that this condition occurs because children interact more frequently through screens than with people around them.
“Children who spend too much time in the digital world tend to experience a decline in their ability to interact socially in real life,” Pratama said when contacted by Kompas.com on Monday (16 March 2026).
Limited social interaction in the real world has the potential to affect children’s ability to build relationships and adapt to their surrounding environment.
Beyond the social impact, unsupervised gadget use also opens various risks in the digital space.
Children are the most vulnerable group of internet users to various cyber threats because they generally do not yet understand the long-term consequences of their digital activities.
Exposure to negative content on social media is also a significant risk.
According to Pratama, children who frequently spend time with gadgets are more easily exposed to violent content, pornography, hate speech, and cyberbullying.
“The most common risks that emerge are exposure to violent content, pornography, hate speech, and cyberbullying,” he said.
This situation is exacerbated because the development of the digital space is far faster than the readiness of regulations and public digital literacy.
As a preventive measure, the government through the Ministry of Communications and Digital plans to restrict social media accounts for children under 16 years of age.
This policy is outlined in Government Regulation Number 17 of 2025 concerning the Management of Electronic System Operations in Child Protection, also known as PP Tunas, which is scheduled to be implemented from 28 March 2026.