Bangkok: The government has initiated a significant crackdown on illegal websites, blocking more than 100,000 sites within the first six months of the fiscal year 2025. This move primarily targets online gambling platforms as part of an ongoing effort to curb online crimes.
According to Thai News Agency, Ms. Sasikarn Wattanachan, deputy government spokeswoman, announced that the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DE) is actively working to suppress online criminal activities. This initiative aligns with the urgent policies of Prime Minister Ms. Paethongtarn Shinawatra's government, aiming to eliminate illegal social media pages and website URLs to disrupt criminal networks.
From October 2024 to March 2025, the Ministry of Digital Economy blocked 101,026 illegal sites, averaging 16,837 per month. This marks a 1.62-fold increase compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year, where 62,438 sites were blocked, averaging 10,406 per month.
The breakdown of blocked sites during this period includes 42,098 online gambling cases, a 1.45-fold increase from the previous year's 29,076 cases. Online distortion and fraud cases accounted for 24,887 blocks, a slight decrease from the previous 27,638 cases. Other types of illegal activities saw 34,041 blocks, a significant increase from the previous 5,724 cases.
Ms. Sasikarn urged public cooperation in preventing online crimes and requested citizens to report illegal websites, particularly those related to online gambling, to the hotline 1111, Line ID: @antifakenewscenter, or the website www.antifakenewscenter.com. She emphasized the government's commitment to enforcing strict legal measures to secure the online community for everyone.