Social media ban for children under 16 starts in Australia

Australia has enacted a groundbreaking law banning social media use for anyone under 16, affecting millions of children and teenagers across the country.

Platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, YouTube, Snapchat, Reddit, Kick, Twitch, and TikTok have been required to remove accounts of under-16 users and prevent new registrations, with noncompliance punishable by fines of up to AUD 49.5 million.

While most platforms confirmed compliance, some, including X, have yet to publicly communicate their policies. Implementation challenges have emerged, such as younger users passing facial age verification checks, but authorities caution that the ban will not be perfect from day one. Age assurance services like k-ID have conducted hundreds of thousands of age checks for platforms such as Snapchat.

Parents have expressed mixed reactions. Some worry their children may be excluded socially, while others welcome the ban as a tool to curb social media overuse. Reports have also emerged of parents helping teens bypass restrictions using VPNs and other methods.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese defended the ban, comparing it to the legal drinking age, emphasizing its societal benefits despite inevitable circumvention by some teens. Polls indicate around two-thirds of voters support raising the minimum social media age to 16.

The ban has drawn global attention, with countries including Malaysia, Denmark, and Norway considering similar restrictions, and the EU passing a resolution to adopt comparable measures. The UK government is reportedly monitoring Australia’s approach.

The eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, said the regulator will monitor platform compliance, sending notices to companies and evaluating both intended and unintended impacts, such as children moving to less regulated parts of the internet. An independent academic advisory group will assess the short-, medium-, and long-term consequences of the ban.

Teens affected by the ban had been preparing by completing age verification checks, and some shared mobile numbers publicly ahead of account deactivations. Platforms are urging users not to share personal contact information, while regulators continue to expand oversight to additional apps such as Yope and Lemon8, which have surged in popularity among younger users seeking alternatives.

Source: The Guardian