Digital platforms must prevent online gambling promotions in comment sections: Observer

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Cybersecurity observer Alfons Tanujaya has stressed that digital platform providers must comply with regulations prohibiting online gambling, including preventing the use of social media comment sections to promote gambling sites. He noted that the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs can pressure social media platforms to proactively participate in eradicating online gambling because they are registered as Electronic System Operators (PSE) conducting business in Indonesia. “As PSEs, they are obliged to follow Indonesian laws that prohibit gambling activities and their promotion,” Alfons said in a press statement in Jakarta on Wednesday. He made the statement in response to the proliferation of comments containing online gambling promotions on social media platforms during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Automatically operating bots were deployed to generate responses promoting gambling sites on viral posts with high interaction rates. According to Alfons, the surge in online gambling promotions in comment sections indicates that the operating space for online gambling operators is narrowing after the government tightened supervision of digital platforms, including through the implementation of biometric data-based SIM card registration rules starting 1 July 2026. As it becomes more difficult to reach targets through websites and SMS, the networks have shifted to exploiting comment sections on social media platforms as a promotional channel. Alfons argued that digital platform providers actually possess the technical capability to recognise patterns of abnormal activity, including the activity of thousands of bot accounts originating from the same network. The ability to identify IP addresses, automated behaviour, and account coordination patterns can be a crucial asset to halt the spread of online gambling promotional content before the comments reach more users. “Eradication is not enough by merely removing content. The perpetrators’ networks must also be severed,” Alfons stated. Beyond taking action in the digital space, Alfons said that a strategy of tracking financial flows is also very important in efforts to dismantle the networks of online gambling operators. He believes the synergy between the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, the Financial Services Authority (OJK), and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) must be strengthened to trace the money flows of online gambling networks. The discovery of spam comments on social media in the past two weeks was recorded to have increased by about 128 percent compared to the average findings throughout January to June 2026. Director General of Digital Space Supervision at the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs, Alexander Sabar, said that online gambling networks utilise automated systems to monitor social media in real time. When a post begins to go viral, thousands of bot accounts automatically flood the comment section with promotions and links to online gambling sites. Alexander noted that the surge in activity was also influenced by the momentum of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which international networks exploited to boost promotions for sports betting. Alexander emphasised that efforts to maintain a safe digital space require collaboration from all parties. The active role of digital platform providers as system managers is needed to realise a safe digital space. Additionally, the public is urged to participate in efforts to eradicate online gambling by not spreading content that promotes gambling and by promptly reporting any content deemed suspicious.