Indonesia blocks over 28,000 accounts in online gambling crackdown
Indonesian financial intelligence agency, The Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center of Indonesia, or PPATK, has blocked over 28,000 bank accounts it believes are responsible for online gambling transactions as part of a broader crackdown on illegal gambling operations.
Several of the blocked accounts were connected to schemes in which bank accounts were bought or sold to hold funds for illegal gambling operations. Many of these were dormant accounts, not used for a long time and with no withdrawals, deposits or transfers.
The agency’s Chief Ivan Yustiavandana said in a written statement, “In accordance with our authority under Law No. 8 of 2010, PPATK has carried out temporary suspensions of customer transactions involving accounts classified as dormant, based on banking data.”
The mass freeze had prompted public concern, with several internet users, including Andrew Darwis, the owner of the internet forum Kaskus, reporting that their accounts had been suspended.
Yustiavandana explained that the funds don’t belong to those customers and that they can reactivate their accounts with their banks by completing the necessary procedures.
To curb the misuse of bank accounts, the agency recommends closing unused accounts, not giving out personal information to unknown parties, and swiftly reporting any suspicious transactions to banks or law enforcement.
The crackdown is part of an ongoing battle in Indonesia to combat the social and economic consequences of online gambling, which has attracted significant transaction volumes in recent years.
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