Australia will soon ban under-16s from social media after a world-first law was passed by the Australian Senate.
As reported by the AP, the law is designed to prevent children younger than 16 from holding accounts on the likes of TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X / Twitter, and Instagram. Social media companies could be on the hook for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) if they fail to prevent under-16s from accessing their platforms.
Social media companies now have one year to work out how they will implement the ban before the penalties kick in. There are concerns that the legislation was rushed and there are questions about how it will work in practice. Users will have to establish they are older than 16, which has already sparked privacy worries. There are also concerns about the impact on mental health, particularly among vulnerable children who use social media for support.
“This is a responsibility these companies should have been fulfilling long ago, but for too long they have shirked these responsibilities in favor of profit,” Opposition Sen. Maria Kovacic told the Senate.
“Naturally, we respect the laws decided by the Australian Parliament,” Facebook and Instagram owner Meta commented.
“However, we are concerned about the process which rushed the legislation through while failing to properly consider the evidence, what industry already does to ensure age-appropriate experiences, and the voices of young people.”
In March, Florida governor Ron DeSantis signed a law that gave his state one of the U.S.’s most restrictive social media bans for minors. Once it takes effect on January 1, it will ban children younger than 14 from social media platforms, and require that 14-15 year-olds get parental consent.
Photo by Brendon Thorne/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].
