Indonesia's Forestry Ministry Threatens Prison Time for Unauthorized Geospatial Data Downloads
Indonesia's forestry ministry has issued a notice stating it will use a controversial internet law to prosecute individuals who download geospatial data without written permission, with potential prison terms of up to nine years. The ministry clarified that these restrictions specifically target data in the widely used shapefile format. Visitors to the ministry's interactive mapping platform, SIGAP, are now met with a legal notice warning that the information is 'view-only' and that unauthorized downloading or extraction will lead to prosecution under the 2008 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law. The notice specifies penalties of up to nine years in prison and/or a fine of up to Rp 3 billion ($170,000). A new application process, outlined in an Instagram video by the Directorate General of Forestry Planning, requires prospective users to disclose research aims and submit supporting documents. Doni Prabowo, head of forest monitoring and geospatial information, stated that these restrictions ar...