Australia plans world-first social media ban on children under 16

Vowing to crack down on tech giants failing to protect vulnerable users, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Nov 7 said his government will enforce new laws banning children under 16 from social media.

Platforms such as Facebook, TikTok and Instagram would be held responsible for enforcing the age ban and face potentially hefty fines for failing to do so, Albanese told reporters.

Pertinently, the Australian government first mooted a social media age limit earlier this year, and the idea enjoys broad bipartisan support among lawmakers.

“This one is for the mums and dads. Social media is doing real harm to kids and I’m calling time on it," Albanese said.

The new laws would be presented to state and territory leaders this week, before being introduced to parliament in late November, he added.

Tech platforms would then be given a one-year grace period to figure out how they would implement the ban. According to Albanese, the unchecked social media algorithms were serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers.

“I get things popping up on my system that I don’t want to see. Let alone a vulnerable 14-year-old," he said adding, “Young women see images of particular body shapes that have a real impact."

Albanese said he had settled on 16 as an appropriate age after a series of age verification trials conducted by the government. Analysts have previously expressed doubt that it would be technically possible to enforce such a strict age ban.

Australia has been at the vanguard of global efforts to clean up social media.

The government introduced a “combating misinformation" bill earlier this year, outlining sweeping powers to fine tech giants for breaching online safety obligations.

Pertinently, Australia’s online watchdog is locked in a running battle with Elon Musk’s X, accusing the platform of failing to stamp out harmful posts.