Mass WhatsApp Account Blocking Causes Uproar, Komdigi to Summon Meta for Explanation

The Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Kemkomdigi) is summoning technology company Meta to seek clarification regarding the surge of complaints from WhatsApp users whose accounts were suddenly blocked.

Director General of Digital Space Supervision at Kemkomdigi, Alexander Sabar, said his team has met directly with Meta representatives to discuss the matter.

“So today we are following up by summoning the team from Meta, particularly those related to WhatsApp,” said Alexander when met at the Kemkomdigi Office in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Alexander explained that Kemkomdigi had sent a first letter to Meta on 14 August 2026 to request clarification regarding the mass blocking of WhatsApp accounts.

According to him, within one week of the letter being sent, Meta did not respond to Kemkomdigi’s request for clarification.

Therefore, Meta was summoned to appear in person at the Kemkomdigi Office to provide an explanation to the government.

“Because until the end of working hours there was no response from Meta, we summoned Meta to be physically present at our premises to provide a direct explanation to the government,” said Alexander.

It is known that WhatsApp users in several countries, including Indonesia, complained that their accounts were blocked and had the status ‘under review’ by Meta.

Based on user complaints posted on various social media platforms, many of them suddenly could not access their WhatsApp accounts.

When trying to access their accounts, WhatsApp displayed a notification stating that account activity and device information were being checked to ensure compliance with the Terms of Service.

Users were also informed that the results of the review would usually be delivered within 24 hours.

According to a report from TechCrunch, Meta acknowledged the issue and said the company was working to restore access to the affected accounts.

Regarding the cause of the mass blocking, Meta explained that the company routinely works to catch parties who misuse WhatsApp services and blocks suspicious accounts to maintain user security.

However, the WhatsApp system sometimes makes mistakes, causing user accounts that should not have been affected to be blocked as well.

“We are working to fix this as quickly as possible so that users can communicate again. We have taken steps to restore the affected accounts,” said a Meta spokesperson.