Facing Government Block Threat, How Many Facebook Users Are There in Indonesia?

Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms in Indonesia. Data from We Are Social recorded that the number of active Facebook users in 2017 was estimated to reach 106 million. This figure grew quite rapidly, reaching 34 percent compared to the previous year, which had 79 million users. Since 2014, Facebook users have continued to grow in Indonesia, even becoming one of the largest in the world.

However, the large number of social media users has caused several problems. One of them is the proliferation of hoax news and the rampant spread of hate speech through social media. In response to this, the Minister of Communication and Informatics (Kominfo), Rudiantara, threatened to block Facebook and other social media platforms if various negative contents, including pornography, hoaxes, and hate speech, are allowed to circulate.

Throughout the year, the government has frozen 105 accounts in January 2017, 97 accounts in February 2017, 13 accounts in March 2017, 3 accounts in April 2017, and 52 accounts in May 2017. The freezing of social media accounts and the closure of negative content were carried out after 25,179 reports were received by the Ministry of Communication and Informatics.