Indonesia blocks Steam, PayPal and other services in the country

Indonesia blocks Steam, PayPal and other services in the country. These companies are not registered with the government

Indonesia has decided to block access to various online platforms after the respective services refused to comply with the law, which came into force on July 29. Affected services include PayPal, Steam and Yahoo.

Indonesia blocks Steam, PayPal and other services in the country

Under the 2020 MR5 law, companies designated as “private electronic system providers” had until this week to register with the government database or risk being banned. Similar to India’s Information Technology Act 2021, the MR5 Act gives Indonesia the right to require online platforms to remove any content that the government deems illegal or threatening public order. For the most “urgent” requests, services have four hours to respond.

According to Reuters, a number of technology companies, including Google, Meta and Amazon, have taken steps to meet the requirements before the deadline. Indonesia could restore access to some of these currently blocked online services, provided they register with the government.

These companies are not registered with the government

PayPal and Valve did not immediately respond to Engadget’s request. Semuel Abrigani Pangerapan, director general of the Indonesian Ministry of Communications and Information, told a local newspaper that the government may temporarily lift restrictions on PayPal so users can withdraw their money.

Organizations such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Human Rights Watch have criticized Indonesia’s new content moderation laws: “[MR5] is a censorship tool that places unrealistic burdens on many digital services and platforms used in Indonesia,”said Linda Lahdhir, Legal Counsel for Asia at Human Rights Watch. Rights Watch. “This poses serious risks to privacy, freedom of expression and access to information for Indonesian internet users.”

Many Indonesians have also spoken out against the law, using hashtags such as “BlockerCominfo”to express their opposition to the government’s decision. Semuel Abrigani Pangerapan recently dismissed this criticism, saying the measure would protect internet users in the country.