Jakarta threatens to ban Facebook over fake news

Jakarta: An Indonesian minister has threatened to shut down Facebook if there is any evidence the personal data of citizens is being harvested or the social media giant fails to crack down on “fake news” during upcoming elections.

Amid the continuing fallout over revelations that the data of 50 million Facebook users was obtained by a firm that helped Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, there is growing fear in Indonesia that its own presidential race could be corrupted.

With the contest set to kick off within months, Communications Minister Rudiantara has voiced concerns that individuals or groups could use social media platforms to try and influence the outcome. “If I have to shut them down, then I will do it,” Mr Rudiantara said last Friday, noting Indonesia had earlier blocked the messaging app, Telegram.

“I did it. I have no hesitation to do it again.The warning extends beyond Facebook to other platforms including Twitter, Alphabet’s Google, which owns YouTube, and a host of other social media companies.

Both Twitter and Google have previously agreed to work with the government to monitor content. Facebook has said it is committed to protecting people’s information, preventing abuse and giving users more control over their data. It is rolling out initiatives around election integrity, it said in an e-mail.

Twitter would not comment on the Indonesian government’s initiatives. Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A country of 260 million people and South-east Asia’s largest economy, Indonesia is a prolific user of social media and boasts more than 115 million Facebook users. Mr Rudiantara’s warning comes amid a crackdown in Indonesia on the use of social media to publish fake news and hate speech. Both Malaysia and Singapore unveiled plans to tackle fake news last month