Regarding Age Restrictions for Children on Social Media, Expert Highlights Verification Mechanism

Jakarta — Cybersecurity expert Pratama Persadha has highlighted critical concerns regarding the implementation of policies restricting access to high-risk digital platforms for children under 16 years of age. According to him, such policies require serious attention to several important aspects to ensure child protection objectives are effectively achieved.

“One of the main aspects that needs attention is the mechanism for verifying user age,” said Pratama Persadha when contacted on Monday, 9 March 2026.

He explained that in the practice of social media use to date, the account registration process often relies solely on age declarations by users themselves. “Children can easily enter a date of birth that does not correspond to their actual age,” he stated.

Persadha believes that without a stronger verification system, age restrictions risk becoming merely administrative rules that are difficult to enforce. “Therefore, a more reliable age verification system needs to be developed through more advanced technological approaches,” he explained.

He added that integration with the national digital identity system could serve as one solution enabling more accurate age verification. “Layered approaches such as this have already begun to be tested in various countries as part of a child protection strategy in digital spaces,” he said.

Beyond age verification mechanisms, the readiness of digital platforms to adjust their operational systems with regulations also represents an important aspect. Digital service providers are considered to need development of more comprehensive child protection features. This includes stricter privacy settings, restrictions on interactions with anonymous users, and more responsive content moderation systems to address potential risks to children.