Australia plans to strengthen laws banning children from social media
The plan would also expand the eSafety Commissioner’s powers to compel evidence as more than 5 million under-16 accounts have been removed or restricted, officials said.
- On Saturday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced plans to double maximum penalties for social media ban breaches to A$99 million and grant the eSafety Commissioner new powers to compel evidence from platforms regarding age-verification compliance.
- Research from the University of Newcastle found 85% of Australian adolescents aged 12 to 15 continued accessing restricted platforms three months after the December ban took effect, highlighting widespread circumvention.
- Communications Minister Anika Wells accused platforms of adopting "tricks straight out of the big tech playbook" to do the "bare minimum," while eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said the existing legislation had "very thin scaffolding."
- Opposition education spokesman Julian Leeser claimed Labor "fumbled" the ban, while Reddit pursues its High Court challenge arguing the restrictions violate constitutional free speech protections.
- Nations including the United Kingdom, Brazil, and Canada are developing similar digital safety policies as Australia's experiment draws global attention, while the government plans to introduce "digital duty of care" legislation later this year.
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155 Articles
Australia is not done regulating social media. While a recent study shows that the ban imposed on teenagers under 16 has not translated into action, the government is taking a tougher stance. Canberra announced on Saturday, June 27, that the maximum fine for tech companies that do not comply [...]
Australia is going to double the fine for tech companies that circumvent the social media ban for children. In addition, the regulator will be given more powers to scrutinize social media companies. The ban for young people under the age of 16 appears to have had little effect so far.
Young people under the age of 16 have not been allowed to use social media in Australia for a few months, but the ban has little effect. Now the government wants to take tougher action against violations.
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