Indonesia Makes Headway Towards A Future Free of Online Gambling

Recent efforts by Indonesia’s OJK to get rid of online gambling have led to the suspension of thousands of bank accountsImage Source: Shutterstock.com

In Indonesia, over 27,000 bank accountshave been suspended due to Indonesia’s crackdown on online gambling.

The crackdown has been spearheaded by Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK).

Dian Ediana Rae, the OJK’s Chief Executive of Banking Supervision, noted that the number of accounts that had been linked with illegal activities last month had been over 25,000.

The OJK has asked banks to suspend accounts whose owners’ National Identity Numbers(NIK) had been connected to gambling.

Government Trying to Help

A new system has been in the works aimed at ensuring constant regulation over online platforms; it has been named Content Moderation Compliance System (SAMAN).

At the same time, many families with ties to online gambling have been left with no government support.

The number of people who have been left with no such support has passed 300,000.

Extreme Cleanup Times

In the last year, quite a large number of online gambling-related posts, as well as items from platforms and social media, have been removed.

It has been discovered that the money spent on gambling by over 130,000 people has been getting distributed through banks and phone apps.

During the crackdown, enforcement has put surveillance on things like VPN’s due to the increased frequency of Indonesians visiting prohibited websites.

Southeast Asia Against Gambling

At the moment, several countries in Southeast Asia have been working tirelessly to rid themselves of online gambling.

Since its ban on online gambling in 2019, Cambodia has had to look for ways to transition its economy further away from online gambling

.The approach of the Philippines towards the issue has been to make sure that the offshore gaming industry thrives.

Meanwhile, Thailand has been on the grind trying to get rid of online gambling through efforts by multiple internal agencies.