Australians under the age of 16 will be banned from using social media

Everything is about to change

After months of debate between the country’s political leaders, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pledged to enforce a national age limit impacting social media usage. Here’s what you need to know.

The proposed legislation is part of the government’s increasing scrutiny of the operations of tech companies within Australia, and the impact social media is having on the mental health of young Australians.

“Social media is doing harm to our kids, and I’m calling time on it,” Albanese says, prefacing his decision to introduce the ban as early as next year. 

Having spoken to ‘thousands’ of Australian parents, Albanese says his decision to fast-track the new legislation is rooted in the negative impact social media continues to have on developing minds. 

“They, like me, are worried sick about the safety of our kids online,” he says. “I want Australian parents and families to know that government has your back. I want parents to be able to say, ‘Sorry, mate, that’s against the law.’”

How will the ban be enforced?

Under the proposed legislation, users under the age of 16 who manage to access a social media platform will not be subject to penalties – nor will their parents. 

Instead, the Prime Minister says the responsibility of enforcing this age limit will lie with the individual tech companies and platforms to “demonstrate they are taking reasonable steps to prevent access” for underage users. 

“The eSafety commissioner will have responsibility for enforcement and there needs to be enhanced penalties to ensure compliance,” says Communications Minister Michelle Rowland, referencing the ineffectiveness of current penalties below $1m.

While Albanese and his government have declared there will be strict penalties for social media platforms that do not comply with the new regulations, it is unclear exactly how they propose to enforce the ban effectively. 

Growing up in the age of social media has had an immense impact. Image: iStock

How will tech companies respond?

When it comes to the major platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, X and TikTok – experts are concerned the technology needed to accurately enforce the proposed ban does not yet exist. 

Albanese and Rowland have expressed the possibility of introducing biometric scanning technology to verify social media users’ ages and identities via a government database, yet it is currently unknown how all tech companies will respond. 

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has already expressed a willingness to comply with the government’s proposed legislation, yet has outlined concerns about the required technology to enforce it on their end. 

“The idea that somehow you can sort of force the industry to be in a technological place that it isn’t, is probably a bit misunderstood in terms of where the industry is,” Antigone Davis, Meta’s global head of safety, shares in a statement to reporters.

Concerned with the potentially complicated, time-consuming and risky ramifications of requiring up to 40 different apps to enforce the legislation, she argues the responsibility of enforcement should instead lie with app stores such as Google and Apple.

Originally published as Australians under the age of 16 will be banned from using social media