Jakarta. The government announced on Thursday that it has blocked access to hundreds of thousands of illegal content throughout this year, in bid to keep the country’s digital realm safe and pristine.

“Throughout 2021, the Communication and Information Technology Ministry has cut off access to 565,449 content which violate the laws and regulations, in various websites and social media platforms,” the ministry’s spokesman Dedy Permadi told a year-end conference in Jakarta on Thursday. 

A video played during the presser showed that the negative content found on websites covered a number of categories, including pornography, gambling, child sexual exploitation, illegal online lending. Negative content were also circulating on social media platforms, including Twitter, TikTok, Telegram, among others.

"We have dealt with 1,773 hoaxes or disinformation,” Dedy said, while adding that the government had identified 723 hoaxes related to Covid-19.

Of the 1,773 hoaxes, most fell under the health category which reached 529. Followed by scams and government-related hoaxes, which amounted to 462 and 296 respectively, data showed. 

Dedy added, “hoaxes and the infodemic have become a major challenge in public communications."

He also called on everyone to combat any hoax or misleading information circulating amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

As digital interactions increase, protecting the internet realm has become more challenging. Not to mention Indonesia's digital literacy gap.

To this end, the Communication Ministry is doubling down its efforts to improve the public's digital literacy. The ministry will also upgrade its content moderation system.

"We will also support the law enforcement in processing any law violation in the digital realm," Dedy added.

In 2021, the Communication Ministry has handled 43 personal data protection incidents, nine of which have completed the investigation and given administrative sanctions.

"About 24 incidents are still in the handling process," Dedy said.