US EditionMeta alerts young Australians to download their data before a social media ban
Meta is notifying about 500,000 Australian users aged 13-15 to save data before account removals begin Dec. 4 under new social media age-restriction law.
- Meta began sending thousands of in-app messages, emails and SMS to suspected under-16s, warning Australian children aged 13 to 15 they will lose access on Thursday, December 4, with roughly two weeks to save content before the federal ban on Wednesday, December 10.
- The Australian government has mandated exclusions from December 10, requiring platforms including Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, X and YouTube to exclude under-16 users or face fines up to Aus$49.5 million.
- Meta says affected teens should export data via the Meta Accounts Centre in HTML or JSON and receive a ZIP file, with around 350,000 Instagram users and 150,000 Facebook accounts aged 13-15 affected.
- Meta warns of a margin of error in age estimates and offers verification routes; some over-16 users can verify age with a video selfie or government ID via Yoti.
- Meta vice president and global head of safety Antigone Davis urged OS/app store‑level age verification as a more accurate, privacy‑preserving alternative, while New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon plans similar legislation amid global regulators' interest.
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79 Articles
Mark Zuckerberg's Meta to Deactivate Instagram Accounts of Australian Teens Ahead of Social Media Ban
Mark Zuckerberg's Meta, the parent company of Instagram, Facebook, and Threads, has started notifying Australian users aged between 13 and 15 that their accounts will be shut down before the country's upcoming social media ban for teens under the age of 16 takes effect in December.
Meta Tells Australian Kids to Download Data Before Social Media Ban
Meta said Nov. 19 it had begun warning thousands of young Australians to download their data from their Facebook, Instagram, and Threads accounts ahead of next month’s social media ban for users under 16. The Australian government said earlier this month that the three Meta platforms, plus Snapchat, TikTok, X, YouTube, Reddit, and Kick, must take reasonable steps to exclude Australian account holders younger than 16, beginning Dec. 10. Meta said…
Meta Removes Under-16 Users Before Australia’s Ban
As Australia prepares to implement the world’s first social media ban for users under 16, Meta is already taking action—removing its youngest users from Facebook, Instagram, and Threads ahead of the new law. The company announced on Wednesday that it will start to kick existing under-16 users off its platforms from Dec. 4, notifying them through a mix of email, SMS, and in-app messages. It will also ban under-16s from creating new accounts. The …
Die Presse
der Standard DEAs of December 10, a social media ban will enter into force in Australia. In case of violation, a penalty of several million dollars is threatened.
Australia has become the first country in the world to block access to social media for young people under 16. However, some platforms will remain accessible.
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