Kominfo Reviews Discourse on Blocking Online Gambling IP Addresses from Cambodia

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) is currently reviewing the possibility of blocking sites originating from Cambodia. This option is being looked at because many online gambling sites have Internet Protocol Addresses (IP Addresses) from neighboring countries.

“That is one of the options we are studying, it is not impossible,” said Minister of Communication and Information, Budi Arie Setiadi in a press conference, Friday, (24/5/2024).

Budi admitted that the option of blocking IP addresses from Cambodia was not without challenges. He is worried that online gambling organizers will use other countries' IP addresses to still be able to enter Indonesia.

“That's one option, but in a borderless internet world, they might go through another country,” he said.

Previously, Kominfo discovered that there were a number of countries that were hotbeds for online gambling. The two countries with the most online gambling servers accessed by Indonesians are known to be located in Cambodia and the Philippines.

Online gambling servers are known to move frequently, but the centers come from these two countries. The large number of online gambling servers in Cambodia is also accompanied by the rise of criminal acts of human trafficking with victims being Indonesian citizens who are recruited to work in that country.

Budi said that to overcome the rise of online gambling, the government has prepared two new efforts. The first effort, he said, is to revoke the license of Internet Service Providers or digital platforms that facilitate online gambling games.

Apart from that, Budi said the government would also impose fines on ISPs who were found to still have online gambling content on their platforms. The fine prepared is IDR 500 million for each content found.

“To all ISP operators, if you are not cooperative, I will not hesitate to revoke your permit which is used to facilitate online gambling games,” said Budi.

[Gambas:Video CNBC]

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