Australia's social media ban for kids under 16 goes into effect

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Australia’s social media ban for children 16 and under officially went into effect at midnight local time on Dec. 10.

Many child advocates and parents have welcomed the ban, a global first, calling it a move to protect and boost kids' mental health, anxiety levels and self-esteem, even if there is confusion about whether companies can actually keep children off their apps and sites.

"My eldest child is 10. So I think that for parents who have children 10 and younger are really grateful for it because I can absolutely see the benefit of it," drama therapist Tanya Short, a mom of three, told ABC News.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese predicted the new law would become "a source of national pride" and said the ban was aimed at protecting and supporting Australian families. "This law is about making it easier for you to have a conversation with your child about the risks and harms of engaging online," Albanese said in a statement Sunday. "It’s also about helping parents push back against peer pressure. You don’t have to worry that by stopping your child using ­social media, you’re somehow making them the odd one out. Now, instead of trying to set a 'family rule', you can point to a national ban."

Social media platforms are required to "take reasonable steps" to prevent a child user who is 16 and under from creating or continuing to use a social media account or features that have a social media component to them, according to the law. Companies under the law are required to deactivate or remove current accounts tied to users under 16 and prevent kids from creating new accounts or use workarounds to use the platforms.

The ban currently applies to 10 platforms run by social media companies, including Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, Reddit, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitch, X and YouTube, according to the eSafety Commissioner, the Australian government’s independent online safety regulator.

Social media companies have pushed back against the new law, with Snapchat characterizing the measure as misguided and even potentially risky for children.

"Disconnecting teens from their friends and family doesn’t make them safer — it may push them to less safe, less private messaging apps," Snapchat said in a Nov. 22 statement. "We continue to advocate for more privacy-conscious solutions, such as mandating age verification at the device, operating system, or app store level."

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and Threads, also spoke out against the countrywide ban.

"Experts, youth groups, and many parents agree that blanket bans are not the solution—they isolate teens from online communities and information, while providing inconsistent protection across the many apps they use," a Meta spokesperson said in part in a statement to ABC News Tuesday. "There's a better way: legislation that empowers parents to approve app downloads and verify age that allows families—not the government—to decide which apps teens can access."

Dan Donahoo, head of projects at Project Rockit, an anti-bullying movement and organization that has partnered with Facebook in the past, said the ban reflects a growing consensus that children could benefit from more online safety measures but questioned if the new law would be effective.

"Our children need support and we want to look after them, we want to support them in this sort of emerging digital age that we're all living in. But we're also wondering about whether or not this is the best way to really keep them safe," Donahoo told ABC News.

For the most part, social media companies have taken steps to pull the plug on kids' accounts to comply with the new law.

The legal ban, which was passed last year, aims to "protect young Australians from pressures and risks that users can be exposed to while logged in to social media accounts," according to the eSafety Commissioner, the Australian government’s independent online safety regulator. "These come from design features that encourage them to spend more time on screens, while also serving up content that can harm their health and wellbeing."

There are exceptions to the ban, including an exemption for some messaging, online gaming, and professional networking apps.

If companies don’t comply with the ban, they face fines of up to $49.5 million AUD or about nearly $33 million USD.

The implementation of the ban, a global first, is being closely watched as other countries and local governments look to adopt similar measures.

Denmark proposed a social media ban for children under 15 in October, with Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen describing social media platforms as "stealing our children's childhood."

Frederiksen, while addressing the Danish parliament, pointed to cellphones and social media as being negative influences on kids and their mental health, with reading skills and concentration suffering and online safety being a main concern, he said.
 

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