Meta Inspected by Minister of Communications and Digital, Disinformation and Algorithm Transparency Under Scrutiny

Jakarta – Minister of Communications and Digital Meutya Hafid conducted a surprise visit to Meta’s office in Sequis Tower, Senayan, Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta. She was accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Communications and Digital, the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs (Kemenko Polhukam), the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), the Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (Bareskrim) of Polri, Baintelkam of Polri, and Satsiber TNI. After the inspection, Meutya asserted that Meta must comply with Indonesia’s laws. ‘The government’s overall message is that Meta, as an industry based in Indonesia, should benefit from operations conducted in Indonesia and must also be compliant with the laws in force in Indonesia,’ she said in Senayan, South Jakarta, on Wednesday. The inspection is a follow-up to Article 40 of Law Number 1 of 2024 on Information and Electronic Transactions (ITE). The article states that the government is tasked with safeguarding safety and public interests from disruptions caused by misinformation and disinformation. After the inspection, which ran from 15:20 to 16:33 WIB, Meutya revealed that Meta had not fulfilled several obligations. One obligation cited as unmet was openness of the algorithm. ‘First, algorithm transparency, and transparency of content moderation. Then to report matters which are indeed mandatory to report,’ Meutya said. ‘There are also questions that have not been answered; we have asked for heightened supervision.’ Accordingly, adequate oversight is crucial to keep the digital space safe and to protect the public.