The epicentre of the quake, which struck at 9:51 am (0621 IST), was located 234 kilometres southeast of Bau Bau island in southeast Sulawesi province. It was measured at a depth of 670 kilometres.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said the quake was located too deep to generate a tsunami in the Indian Ocean, but tremors were felt on islands as far away as Timor.
Dozens of employees at a two-storey television building in the East Timorese capital Dili rushed outside in panic.
"I just arrived in my office when I suddenly felt the shaking. It's quite strong. Friends screamed to tell people to go outside the building," said a man who worked in the building.
The US Geological Survey measured the quake at 6.8-magnitude. Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.
Published 28 August 2009, 04:43 IST