Digital Literacy Complements Child Protection Implementation in the Digital Realm

Bandarlampung (ANTARA) - Several residents in Bandarlampung have stated that strengthening digital literacy for parents and children is necessary to complement the implementation of child protection policies in the digital realm.

“Regarding the policy to restrict access to social media platforms for children under 16 years old, which will be implemented on 28 March. As parents, we certainly support this policy, because we see that the government’s aim is very good to protect children,” said one Bandarlampung resident, Oktavia, in Bandarlampung on Saturday.

She said the government’s step aims to protect children from excessive exposure to content and to reduce gadget addiction.

“But in my opinion, as a parent with a child under 16 years old, success in achieving that goal also cannot be separated from the role of each parent,” she said.

Furthermore, the implementation of this policy also needs to be complemented by strengthening digital literacy for parents and children.

“So it’s not enough with just the blocking policy, but it also needs to be accompanied by digital literacy for parents and children,” she stated.

A similar response was given by another Bandarlampung resident, Erica.

“The restriction on social media platform usage for children under 16 requires an understanding of digital ethics, digital security, and the ability to utilise digital spaces for beneficial purposes. And this needs to be imparted to parents, so that when children reach the legal age to enter the digital realm, they are not confused,” said Erica.

She stated that currently, understanding of digital literacy is still not widely comprehended by society, making people merely consumers of social media platforms without deeply understanding security, ethics, and digital proficiency.

“Therefore, with this strengthening of digital literacy, parents can become guides for their children. And when children receive digital literacy knowledge at school, they will become agents of change in the use of digital platforms for other children or adults who do not yet understand it,” she added.

The government has issued Ministerial Regulation on Communication and Digital Affairs (Permen Komdigi) No. 9 of 2026, which regulates the delay of social media access for children under 16 years old on high-risk digital platforms.

This policy will begin to be implemented on 28 March 2026. The policy supports the previous regulation, namely Government Regulation No. 17 of 2025 on the Governance of Electronic System Operators in Child Protection (PP Tunas).