Social media ban: AI bots on Reddit, Meta and TikTok provide inaccurate, misleading info for kids
AI chatbots for social platforms including Meta and TikTok are telling kids misleading information about the incoming under-16s social media ban.
Online safety experts are warning parents that AI chatbots within popular social media apps are “digital honey pots” designed to keep kids on the platforms for as long as possible, with more bots found to be misleading teenagers about the upcoming social media ban.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal many platforms captured by the imminent social media age restrictions including Instagram, TikTok and Reddit have AI chatbots, which all offer varying levels of accuracy when asked about Australia’s upcoming social media ban for under 16s.
It comes after Snapchat’s AI bot was caught denying there was a ban and coaching kids on how to persuade their parents to let they say on the app, prompting a ‘please explain’ from the Communications Minister Annika Wells.
When asked if there is a social media ban coming, TikTok’s AI bot named ‘Tako’ said “no, TikTok is not banned for all teenagers in Australia, but a new law will prohibit children under 16 from holding accounts on TikTok and other major social media platforms starting December 2024” – getting just the year wrong.
Reddit’s ‘Reddit Answers’ gave a correct answer and included “a succinct guide” summarising debate over the legislation.
Meta’s Llama 4 AI said the Australian government is “not exactly banning people from having accounts”, “but there are some restrictions for kids under 16”.
However when probed for further information for a 14-year-old it replied “If you’re under 13, your account might be deleted if they find out. But if you’re 14, you should be good to go!”
Artificial intelligence expert at the University of Sydney Dr Mike Seymour said the inaccurate responses are “not surprising for those of us who work in this field, but it’s probably surprising for a user”.
“The expectation would be that this app is providing facts, but the reality is that it’s just a statistical probability device that’s trying to guess the right answer,” he said.
Rather than to inform and educate their young users, the bots’ purpose is to engage them to stay on the platforms for as long as possible, he said.
“Think of them (AI chatbots) like a digital honey pot; to keep you spending more time on my app, I’ll be as friendly and sycophantic as I can – because that’s what the business model is.”
Technology expert and augmented humanity coach Troy Latter said the errors are – from a technical perspective – “a really simple fix” but that platforms have little incentive to override the bots.
“My bet is no one’s asked them to do this until (the ban) happens … there is no benefit of jumping ahead for them,” he said.
A spokeswoman for the Office of the eSafety Commissioner said while Snapchat’s public messaging about how it intends to implement the new laws is “welcomed”, all platforms should “communicate clearly and with care to underage account holders”.
“Whilst eSafety recognises the potential productivity benefits of AI, AI chatbots and companions are not always reliable and are very dependent on the prompts provided,” she said.
“As with all online safety issues, the burden should be on the platform to ensure that the outputs are safe, informed and accurate.”
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Originally published as Social media ban: AI bots on Reddit, Meta and TikTok provide inaccurate, misleading info for kids
