Indonesia considers bug sweeps, tighter controls on spy tools after wiretap scandal
The scandal led to the arrests of four senior police officers, among them a former national police chief who had recently been appointed President Prabowo Subianto’s chief of staff.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto delivers his annual State of the Nation Address ahead of the country’s Independence Day, at the parliament building in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Aug 14, 2026. (File photo: AP/Dita Alangkara)
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
JAKARTA: Indonesia will tighten controls on state surveillance equipment and consider sweeps of its presidential palace for bugging devices, a minister said on Monday (Nov 9), following last week’s discovery of illegal wiretaps on the president, top officials and more.
The wiretapping scandal led to the arrest of four senior police officers accused of unauthorised monitoring of phones, among them a former national police chief who had recently been appointed President Prabowo Subianto’s chief of staff.
The government had said that the wiretapping scandal pointed to treason. An investigation is underway and no formal charges have yet been announced.
Asked if authorities would sweep the presidential palace for covert electronic devices, senior minister for legal affairs Yusril Ihza Mahendra said “it is something we will consider as an anticipation measure”.
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
“The government is also taking steps to ensure that, in the future, the wiretapping equipment held by certain agencies is not misused,” he told reporters.
The scandal comes at a time when Prabowo faces growing public pressure over his costly social programmes and his administration battles to restore investor confidence in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy after a series of setbacks that have caused havoc for its stock market and currency this year.
It has also put the spotlight on growing political tension in Indonesia and a rift between Prabowo and the influential two-term predecessor who once backed him, Joko Widodo.
Authorities have yet to reveal the full extent of the illegal wiretapping, which they say started after Prabowo took office in late 2024.
Among those monitored were business people, journalists, activists and political figures, whose identities have not been disclosed. It is not clear how many people were targeted.
Former police chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo, who is no relation to the president, is widely seen as a loyalist of Widodo. Listyo was reassigned recently to the post of presidential chief of staff but then sacked last week following his arrest over the alleged wiretapping.
Prabowo held a meeting on Sunday with 10 former police chiefs that included discussion on the wiretapping scandal, deputy house speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad separately told reporters.
Minister Yusril said that the investigation came after the national police received a tip, which its new chief investigated then reported to Prabowo.
“Following this report, an investigation was launched, and it has become apparent where the wiretapping devices were located,” Yusril said, without elaborating
Source: Reuters/lk
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
