Kominfo Doesn't Need
a Warrant to Block
Anything.
The "Trust Positive" (PDDI Positif) system allows Kominfo — Indonesia's Ministry of Communication — to block any URL within hours. A complaint from any citizen, NGO, or ministry is enough to trigger a review. The review process takes under 4 working hours. There is no public announcement.
The blocked service is not notified. The user sees a block page with no explanation. The blocked site can apply to be removed — but the process takes weeks, and Kominfo isn't required to respond.
HOW A WEBSITE GETS BLOCKED IN INDONESIA
Indonesia has no central filtering infrastructure like China's Firewall. Each ISP implements the blocklist independently — so the same site may work with one provider but not another. Telkom (the state ISP) typically blocks more aggressively than private competitors.
The Week PayPal, Steam,
and Yahoo Disappeared.
Not a hack. Not a political crisis. One missed government registration deadline blocked the apps that millions of Indonesians use daily for work and income.
Kominfo's new Electronic System Operators regulation requires all foreign digital services to register and agree to data-sharing with the Indonesian government. Hundreds of companies miss the deadline.
At midnight, Kominfo blocks access for all non-compliant companies. 214 million Indonesian internet users wake up to find PayPal, Steam, Epic Games, Counter-Strike, Dota 2, Yahoo Mail, Bing, and Battle.net unreachable.
Indonesian Twitter users erupt. Gamers lose access to Steam libraries. Freelancers can't receive payments. Remote workers find Yahoo and Bing dead. #BlokirKominfo becomes the top trending hashtag within hours.
PayPal complies with the PSE regulation under public pressure, registering in 5 days — a process that normally takes months. Access is restored. Steam/Valve refuses to comply with data-handover requirements.
The minister argues the blocks protect Indonesian users from unregulated foreign tech companies. Critics call it 'digital extortion' — register, agree to hand over user data on demand, or lose access to 214 million users.
The PSE regulation is still active. Any foreign service that loses goodwill with the ministry can be blocked within hours. The incident demonstrated that no platform — however essential — is immune.
Every registered platform agreed to hand user data to the Indonesian government within 24 hours of any request. HorizonVPN keeps your identity separate from the services you use.
Six Categories. One Bureaucracy.
No Consistent Logic.
Indonesia's blocklist spans morality, religion, corporate compliance, and political speech — often using the same system and the same process.
What Changes When You
Connect HorizonVPN.
Connect to Netherlands or Germany
Your traffic exits through a European IP. Indonesia's Kominfo blocklist only applies to traffic routed through Indonesian ISPs — bypassed entirely.
AES-256 encryption hides what you're doing
Your ISP sees an encrypted tunnel. Even if the government requests your data from Telkom, they only see that you used a VPN — not which services or what you accessed.
All blocked services load at full speed
Steam, PayPal, Vimeo, Grindr, unregistered news sites, and any service that failed a Kominfo deadline all become accessible — no restriction, no monitoring.
Indonesians Who Took Their Internet Back
214 million users. Thousands of blocked URLs. One fix.
"When PayPal got blocked in July 2022, my freelance income from international clients stopped overnight. HorizonVPN had PayPal working within 10 minutes. I've never looked back."
"Steam got blocked and I lost access to 200+ games in my library — games I'd paid for. HorizonVPN restored everything. Kominfo can't touch it when I'm connected."
"Vimeo has been blocked here since 2014 — I need it for client work. I tried 3 VPNs before HorizonVPN. The others stopped working after a few weeks. This one has been solid for 8 months."
"I'm an LGBTQ+ activist. All the apps and resources I use are blocked in Indonesia. HorizonVPN is essential — not just for access, but for privacy. I trust the no-logs policy."
"As a journalist covering Papuan independence issues, several news sites I rely on are blocked. HorizonVPN is the only way I can do my job without being monitored through my ISP."
Questions About VPN Use in Indonesia
Is using a VPN legal in Indonesia?
Yes — using a VPN is legal in Indonesia. There is no law prohibiting VPN use for individuals. The government has discussed regulating VPN providers under the PSE system (requiring them to register and comply with data requests), but this has not been implemented as a blanket individual ban. HorizonVPN operates as a private service and does not store logs that could be requested under PSE regulations.
Why was Steam blocked in Indonesia?
Steam was blocked in July 2022 when Valve missed Indonesia's PSE registration deadline. The PSE regulation requires all foreign digital service operators to register with Kominfo and agree to hand over user data within 24 hours of a government request. Valve initially declined to comply with the data-sharing requirements. Steam was unblocked after Valve eventually registered, but the law remains in place. HorizonVPN restores Steam access regardless of its registration status.
Can I access PayPal from Indonesia with a VPN?
PayPal was blocked in July 2022 and restored 5 days later after emergency compliance registration. It currently works in Indonesia but only because PayPal agreed to the PSE data-sharing terms. Using HorizonVPN while accessing PayPal adds a privacy layer — your Indonesian ISP and the government cannot see that you're using PayPal, which may be useful if future PSE disputes lead to re-blocking.
Are LGBTQ+ apps blocked in Indonesia?
Yes. Grindr, Scruff, and most LGBTQ+ dating apps are blocked in Indonesia under morality provisions of the Kominfo Trust Positive system. HorizonVPN unblocks these apps by routing traffic through a European server. Additionally, because HorizonVPN keeps no usage logs, your ISP cannot identify which apps you are accessing — providing privacy protection beyond just unblocking.
Does HorizonVPN work on Indonesian mobile networks (Telkomsel, Indosat)?
Yes. HorizonVPN works on all Indonesian ISPs and mobile carriers including Telkomsel, Indosat Ooredoo, XL Axiata, Smartfren, and Telkom's IndiHome home broadband. Note that Telkom and IndiHome tend to block more aggressively than private mobile carriers. Our stealth protocol is specifically configured to work on all Indonesian networks including those with more aggressive DPI.
What happens to my data if the government requests it from WhatsApp or Google in Indonesia?
WhatsApp, Google, Instagram, and TikTok have all registered under Indonesia's PSE regulation and agreed to respond to government data requests within 24 hours. This means Kominfo can formally request your account information, messages, and identity data from these platforms. When you use HorizonVPN, your real IP address and location are hidden from these platforms — they only see a German or Dutch IP, which limits what location-based data they can provide in response to an Indonesian government request.
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