Meta platforms said to carry disguised gambling promotions despite national ban

Gambling promoters are reportedly exploiting Meta’s ad ecosystem with deceptive campaigns that bypass the company’s policies and Indonesia’s ongoing crackdown on illegal betting, according to an AFP investigation. The findings raise uncomfortable questions for platforms reliant on automated ad systems and shine a spotlight on the scale of illicit marketing circulating in Southeast Asia’s largest social media market.

AFP identified dozens of paid gambling ads actively running between September and November across Facebook, Instagram, and Threads. Designed to evade Meta’s prohibitions, the adverts reportedly masqueraded as innocuous content - from video games to health advice, including claims on “how to lower diabetes” or the supposed benefits of various fruits - but redirected users to betting websites.

For Indonesian users, the experience has become increasingly intrusive. “It's become really disturbing,” said Zee, a 32-year-old gamer who encountered the ads on Instagram. “I suspect their target is people who like playing games, therefore children can also see such advertisements.” Another user, 24-year-old Moli, said she regularly reports the adverts: “but they keep reappearing.”

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Indonesia bans online and offline gambling - along with the promotion of such activities - yet billions continue to flow through the sector each year. Authorities have removed more than 5.7 million gambling-related pieces of online content in the past eight years and have stepped up enforcement, with at least 85 influencers arrested last year for promoting online betting. Penalties include prison terms of up to 10 years for promotion and up to four years for gambling itself.

The ministry of communication and digital affairs frequently instructs social platforms to remove such content and issues escalating warning letters if requests go unanswered. “Continued inaction will result in a third warning letter sent to the platform, which carries additional penalties and may lead to access termination,” Alexander Sabar, director general for digital space supervision, told AFP.

TikTok faced such consequences in October, when its operating licence was temporarily suspended after the platform refused to provide data related to alleged online gambling activity. When asked whether Meta could be summoned following AFP’s findings, Sabar said the ministry maintains ongoing communication with platforms and “urges all digital platforms to strengthen their ad detection and moderation systems in accordance with Indonesian laws and regulations”.

AFP’s investigation also found one account operating 49 ads under the misleading title “Pomegranate: The Exotic Red Fruit Rich in Benefits”. While the content appeared harmless, the ads linked to a betting website promising new users they could “directly win”. The account listed Hanoi as its location, though AFP could not independently confirm this, and did not receive responses from accounts it attempted to contact.

The scale of exposure is substantial. A forthcoming study from Indonesian research firm Populix reveals that 98% of social media users in the country have encountered gambling promotions - including paid ads. Of those, 32% say they tried online gambling after seeing such content, and 4% continue to gamble.

Gambling-related promotions span overt ads, video overlays, comments and disguised commercial content, according to the firm’s head of policy and society research, Vivi Zabkie. Meanwhile, the Indonesian financial transaction reports and analysis centre told AFP that online gambling transactions reached IDR 927 trillion (US$55.7 billion) between 2017 and the first quarter of 2025. It previously reported that 80% of online gamblers are students or low-income individuals - underscoring the vulnerability of target audiences.

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