Jakarta. The Communication and Digital Ministry (Komdigi) is studying the possibility of introducing a certification system for social media influencers, following a similar move recently adopted by China for content creators discussing sensitive topics such as law and health.

Bonifasius Wahyu Pudjianto, Head of the Human Resources Development Agency (BPSDM) at Komdigi, said the idea remains in the early stages of internal discussion.

“Since this is a new issue, we are still studying it,” Bonifasius told reporters at Komdigi’s headquarters in Central Jakarta on Friday.

He said the proposal has become a topic of interest within the ministry. “It’s an interesting issue. We’ve been discussing it in our internal group chat; other countries have started to implement new regulations, and we’re trying to understand how it could apply here,” he said.

Bonifasius said Komdigi has yet to make any decision regarding the plan and is still seeking feedback from the public and industry players.

“We must review it together. Nothing has been decided, let alone implemented. Input from our partners is essential; we have to listen,” he said.

If the policy were to be introduced, Bonifasius noted that the government would need to carefully design the mechanism to avoid overlapping regulations. “There must be a clear grading system, who it targets, what criteria apply. Because today, there are so many content creators,” he explained.

He added that influencer certification could be useful to ensure content creators have sufficient competence when conveying information, especially in sensitive areas. However, he cautioned that any regulation should not restrict online creativity.

“We need to protect the public but not to the point of stifling creativity,” Bonifasius said.

He added that Indonesia remains open to learning from other countries’ approaches to digital ecosystem protection. “We observe global trends to see how countries are protecting their digital ecosystems and their citizens. This idea from China is the most recent example,” he said.

He cited an earlier example where Indonesia adopted elements of Australia’s policy to protect minors in the digital space. “In Australia, children below a certain age are not allowed to use social media. We’ve learned from that experience,” he said.

China’s new certification rules, issued in August, require stricter oversight of social media accounts providing medical or scientific information to prevent misinformation. The guidelines, jointly issued by four major Chinese government agencies, set clearer distinctions between legitimate public health education and disguised advertising.

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