Australia Toughens Kids' Social Media Ban, Doubles Potential Penalties for Tech Firms
The reforms would give Australia’s online safety watchdog police-like powers as a study found 85% of teens still used social media after the ban.
- On Saturday, the Australian government announced it would double the maximum fine for platforms violating its under-16 social media ban to $99 million, raising the ceiling from the previous $49.5 million limit in place since December 2025.
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Communications Minister Anika Wells initiated the changes after months of evidence showed teens continued accessing restricted platforms, with one study finding 85 percent of interviewed young Australians still using social media.
- Minister Wells accused platforms of "adopting tricks straight out of the big tech playbook and doing the bare minimum to get by," prompting the government to expand eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant's authority to demand evidence from third-party providers.
- Reddit has challenged the ban in Australia's highest court on free speech grounds, while senior opposition lawmaker Jane Hume suggested her party might support reforms, describing the original legislation as "undercooked."
- Other nations, including the United Kingdom, are closely watching Australia's experiment as they consider similar restrictions, though analysts warn that increasing penalties may not prevent teens from bypassing age-verification technology.
81 Articles
81 Articles
Australia doubles down on under-16 social media ban with $99 million fines
Australia admits its social media ban for minors under 16 is failing, with over 85% of teens still using platforms. The government is doubling fines to $99 million AUD and expanding surveillance powers despite enforcement challenges. A BMJ study found no substantive reduction in teen social media use, with daily use unchanged among 12-to-13-year-olds. Age verification is easily circumvented, with two-thirds of platforms only requiring users t…
Australia raises social media ban penalties to $99 million as children keep accessing platforms
Australia's government said tech companies are "not doing enough" to keep children off social media sites. In addition to the doubling of potential penalties, the eSafety Commissioner – Australia's internet regulator – will have strengthened information-gathering powers under proposed reforms.Read Entire Article
Fines doubled as teens outsmart Australia's world-first social media ban
Australia moves to double fines for social media platforms after seven in 10 children remained active on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok three months after the world-first ban on under-16s took effect — with Big Tech accused of "taking the Mickey."
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