The Indonesian government has blocked privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo following numerous complaints from citizens about pornographic and online gambling content in its search results. Gambling is illegal in Indonesia and porn is considered morally unacceptable.
DuckDuckGo confirmed to BleepingComputer, “We can confirm that DuckDuckGo is blocked in Indonesia due to their censorship policies. Unfortunately, there is currently no way to unblock it, similar to how we have been blocked in China for about a decade.” However, Google Search remains available in the country.
Government’s Stance on Online Content
In January 2024, Indonesia announced plans to block nearly 600,000 gambling-related websites and 5,000 bank accounts linked to them. Previously, the government blocked many porn sites, portals like Reddit and Vimeo, and imposed temporary or partial restrictions on platforms such as Tumblr, Telegram, TikTok, Netflix, and Badoo.
Future Plans and VPN Restrictions
The Indonesian government intends to block free VPNs that the population uses to bypass the blocking, adds NIX Solutions. Indonesian Minister of Communications and Information Budi Arie Setiadi announced this on July 31, emphasizing that gamers use free VPN tools to access blocked online gambling portals.
We’ll keep you updated on any developments regarding these restrictions and their impact on internet access in Indonesia.