In all my years here, I have felt it to be one of the safest places I have visited/stayed in in the world. Whether I am in Jakarta or in Bandung, the overwhelming experience I've had has been one of being the object of curiosity (almost childlike). It's not so much that people are interested in me as a human, more people being interested in me as a representative of some exotic species that can talk about places outside of Indonesia and a lifestyle very different to theirs.
As with Gemima, I am tall, pale & blonde, I stand out very much in a crowd & I've used all manner of public transport over the years.
I used to walk around a lot in Jakarta, and as has already been stated, you will see the regular faces on your route, they will say hello... just respond in kind: a smile and a hello goes a long way.
You will see someone selling food or sweeping the streets, or the security guards and other employees around the buildings on your route.
You will likely be memorable to them, even if at first they aren't memorable to you. So, warm smiles and friendly greetings are the order of the day- these are the people who will look out for you on your regular route.
I can state I haven't been attacked- but I did once fall off a kerb edge and hit the floor sustaining a twisted ankle- all the people around rushed over to help me .
I did once accidentally leave my card in an atm machine and the next week when I was in that area again a security guard chased up the street to me to give me back my card.
Even in the big cities Indonesian people remind me more of people from small villages in the UK, they want to know stuff, they want their area to be safe , overall they want their area to be friendly and they tend (as with most people) to reflect your own attitude back at you.
I am not saying there are no thieves or bad people around, there are, but in my decade or so here I haven't experienced any trauma at their hands ... other than having a few chickens stolen from our house in the village (at the time we had no walls and gates on the land, and it was empty & under renovation). [edit- once in Depok, I was walking alone about 9pm and a guy jumped out of the bushes holding a bamboo stick, initially he seemed shocked at my being a "bule" but then said something like - "halo bule, give me your money"- he was about 20 inches shorter than me... I responded with something like "Hello, fuck off" and he did. Haha that was actually funny to me and I wasn't intimidated.
My husband is a rock musician, I have found myself in some strange places, often alone in crowds at night, at concerts, surrounded by drunks and this is the only time I have had to use defensive measures... usually with drunks being over-eager for selfies with me. The one time I clearly recall standing up and getting in someone's face was actually in such a setting- it was drunken woman who was being annoying (she is actually the wife of a friend of the family) and her behaviour was out of hand- she tipped an oil candle over my timid friend's skirt and picked up my drink & walked off with it.
I went over to her gave her the riot act, snatched my drink back and told her to stay the hell away from us or I would clobber her. She dodged us for the rest of the night and the next day there was quite a to-do about it all amongst the family with her husband conveying her sincerest apologies etc etc.. but the main thing was that this 'sweet and kind Bule' (me- haha!! obviously I have cultivated a fab public persona hehe) had been sufficiently provoked to rear up therefore the other party must have been extremely offensive and they told her off for it.
Should you (or anyone else reading this) attend any concerts or such like and notice drugs being done, what I suggest is get the hell out of dodge, if there is a raid the cops will likely target the foreigners. I keep well away from such stuff at the concerts I attend (several a month pre covid) - which are most often open air and frequently for biker's gangs. Even so in such places I haven't witnessed the level of assholes that I have in other countries lol. I have never felt threatened.
A lot of Indonesians that I have met have the impression that foreigners are stand offish or arrogant - try to not feed into that stereotype and then you will likely find that they are saying that you aren't arrogant/stuck-up ' Anda tidak sombong' is quite a compliment- it means you are nicer than they expected.
Ah... I have rattled on enough now, but by all means message and chat in private if you wish to.