Australia plans to strengthen laws banning children from social media
FILE - Three boys use their phones while sitting outside a school in Sydney, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. Rick Rycroft/AP hide caption
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Rick Rycroft/AP
MELBOURNE, Australia — The Australian government plans to strengthen laws that ban children younger than 16 from social media platforms, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
Observers said on Friday the government was responding to evidence that the ban on young children holding accounts on platforms including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube had failed since it came into force on Dec. 10 last year. Australia was the first country in the world to pass legislation keeping youth off social media, but others have since followed.
Albanese told Parliament on Thursday this government was considering options to strengthen the ban.
"We're working on that as a priority because this is something that other generations didn't have to deal with, which is why it's complex," Albanese told Parliament.
He told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Friday the government was asking "are the laws as strong as possible?" and did eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant, Australia's online safety watchdog, "have every power at her disposal?"
Britain announced last week plans to ban children under 16 from a range of platforms to protect them from harmful content and excessive screen time.
Canada, Brazil and Indonesia have introduced legislation or announced age-based restrictions or requirements for children's access to social media. France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea are among others studying or developing similar approaches.
Inman Grant said in April she was considering court action against Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, alleging they were not doing enough to keep young Australian children off their platforms.
These platforms, as well as X, Kick, Reddit, Threads and Twitch, face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars ($34 million) if they fail to take reasonable steps to remove the accounts of young children.
Melbourne's RMIT University expert on information sciences Lisa Given said the government's proposed reform was a response to evidence that the ban was failing. The evidence included eSafety's own data released in March that showed seven in 10 underage children continued to hold accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok since December.
Given also pointed to a study published in the British Medical Journal on Wednesday that found 85% of a group of Australian 12 to 17-year-olds were using restricted platforms.
"I do think it's failing," Given said. "Many kids in the media have reported that they also think that this is really a failed exercise."
The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported Inman Grant saying in an interview in early June: "I don't have potent powers."
"What I would say is a regulator is only as good as the tools and the resources that they're given," she is quoted as saying.
The Associated Press asked Inman Grant's office on Friday to comment on the accuracy of that reporting, but her office did not immediately reply.
Given said Inman Grant faced a challenge in enforcing legislation that platforms were resisting.
"Either the eSafety Commissioner needs more powers or we've got to have some other approach to enforcement," Given said.
Given expected the courts would need to decide what constituted "reasonable steps" required by the law to be taken to keep children off platforms.
Albanese said as part of increased efforts to enforce the social media ban, his government would proceed with digital duty of care legislation which would hold platforms accountable for foreseeable harms caused by content and algorithms.
Read the full story at NPR ↗
Australia enacted the world's first law banning children under 16 from social media in December 2024. Within months, evidence indicated the ban was not working as intended. Data from Australia's eSafety Commissioner showed seven in ten underage children maintained accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok. A British Medical Journal study found 85% of Australian 12-17 year-olds were using restricted platforms. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the government would strengthen the legislation as a priority. The eSafety Commissioner, who can impose fines up to 49.5 million Australian dollars on non-compliant platforms, has indicated she lacks sufficient powers to enforce the rules effectively. The government is considering digital duty of care legislation to hold platforms accountable for foreseeable harms. Other nations including Britain, Canada, Brazil, Indonesia, France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand, and South Korea are studying or implementing similar restrictions.
Read the full story at NPR ↗
FILE - Three boys use their phones while sitting outside a school in Sydney, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025. Rick Rycroft/AP hide caption
toggle caption
Rick Rycroft/AP
MELBOURNE, Australia — The Australian government plans to strengthen laws that ban children younger than 16 from social media platforms, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
Observers said on Friday the government was responding to evidence that the ban on young children holding accounts on platforms including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube had failed since it came into force on Dec. 10 last year. Australia was the first country in the world to pass legislation keeping youth off social media, but others have since followed.
Albanese told Parliament on Thursday this government was considering options to strengthen the ban.
"We're working on that as a priority because this is something that other generations didn't have to deal with, which is why it's complex," Albanese told Parliament.
He told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Friday the government was asking "are the laws as strong as possible?" and did eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant, Australia's online safety watchdog, "have every power at her disposal?"
Britain announced last week plans to ban children under 16 from a range of platforms to protect them from harmful content and excessive screen time.
Canada, Brazil and Indonesia have introduced legislation or announced age-based restrictions or requirements for children's access to social media. France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea are among others studying or developing similar approaches.
Inman Grant said in April she was considering court action against Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, alleging they were not doing enough to keep young Australian children off their platforms.
These platforms, as well as X, Kick, Reddit, Threads and Twitch, face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars ($34 million) if they fail to take reasonable steps to remove the accounts of young children.
Melbourne's RMIT University expert on information sciences Lisa Given said the government's proposed reform was a response to evidence that the ban was failing. The evidence included eSafety's own data released in March that showed seven in 10 underage children continued to hold accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok since December.
Given also pointed to a study published in the British Medical Journal on Wednesday that found 85% of a group of Australian 12 to 17-year-olds were using restricted platforms.
"I do think it's failing," Given said. "Many kids in the media have reported that they also think that this is really a failed exercise."
The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported Inman Grant saying in an interview in early June: "I don't have potent powers."
"What I would say is a regulator is only as good as the tools and the resources that they're given," she is quoted as saying.
The Associated Press asked Inman Grant's office on Friday to comment on the accuracy of that reporting, but her office did not immediately reply.
Given said Inman Grant faced a challenge in enforcing legislation that platforms were resisting.
"Either the eSafety Commissioner needs more powers or we've got to have some other approach to enforcement," Given said.
Given expected the courts would need to decide what constituted "reasonable steps" required by the law to be taken to keep children off platforms.
Albanese said as part of increased efforts to enforce the social media ban, his government would proceed with digital duty of care legislation which would hold platforms accountable for foreseeable harms caused by content and algorithms.
Read the full story at NPR ↗
Australia passed legislation in December 2024 banning children under 16 from social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, X, Kick, Reddit, Threads, and Twitch. Australia was the first country to pass such legislation. Data released by the eSafety Commissioner in March showed seven in ten underage children held accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok since the ban came into force. A British Medical Journal study published in June found 85% of a group of Australian 12-17 year-olds were using restricted platforms. The initial ban is failing. Prime Minister Albanese told Parliament the government is considering options to strengthen the ban and is asking whether the laws are as strong as possible. The eSafety Commissioner stated she does not have potent powers for enforcement. Platforms face fines up to 49.5 million Australian dollars if they fail to take reasonable steps to remove young children's accounts. The eSafety Commissioner is considering court action against major platforms for not doing enough to keep young Australian children off their services. An RMIT University expert said the government's proposed reform responds to evidence that the ban was failing and that either the eSafety Commissioner needs more powers or enforcement requires a different approach. Britain, Canada, Brazil, and Indonesia have introduced or announced age-based social media restrictions; France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand, and South Korea are studying similar approaches. The government will proceed with digital duty of care legislation to hold platforms accountable for foreseeable harms caused by content and algorithms.
Read the full story at NPR ↗
- Australia's government plans to strengthen laws banning children under 16 from social media, enacted in December 2024
- Evidence shows the initial ban is ineffective: 70% of underage children maintain accounts on major platforms, and 85% of Australian 12-17 year-olds use restricted platforms
- The eSafety Commissioner lacks sufficient enforcement powers; the government is considering additional legislation including digital duty of care rules
- Multiple countries including Britain, Canada, Brazil, and Indonesia have introduced or are developing similar age-based social media restrictions