Australia has become the first country in the world to roll out a blanket ban preventing children under 16 from holding accounts on major social media platforms. The law, passed in 2024 and now in force, comes amid intensifying concerns over online harms, mental health decline among adolescents, and tech platforms’ unchecked influence on young users. With more than one million underage social media users in Australia in 2024, according to the country’s eSafety Commissioner, the stakes were high. Now, as the ban formally begins, parents, educators, and tech companies are adjusting to a dramatically changed digital landscape. And countries around the world, including India, are watching closely to see whether this is a bold blueprint or a warning about overcorrection.Below is a detailed look at what the ban entails, how companies are responding, and why this moment matters far beyond Australia’s borders.
What the ban covers and how it works
The law bars under-16 users from creating or accessing accounts on ten major platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, X, and Twitch. The government selected these platforms because their “primary or significant purpose is enabling online social interaction,” eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said, as reported by ABC.Prime Minister Anthony Albanese framed the change as a shift in power back to families. “This is the day when Australian families are taking back power from these big tech companies,” he told ABC on Wednesday. The push reflects longstanding frustration about platforms’ inconsistent age enforcement; historically, most apps required users to be 13, but little stopped much younger children from signing up.Initial compliance has been uneven. Several under-16 users told ABC they managed to bypass age checks—including one 13-year-old who reportedly passed a biometric face scan “by hiding his teeth and scrunching up his face.” Still, underage users will not face penalties. The responsibility rests entirely on companies, which could face fines of up to A$49.5 million (around USD 32 million) for violations.Platforms have been given flexibility on how to verify age. They are experimenting with document uploads, biometric scans, behavioral analysis, and new forms of privacy-preserving models. Without accounts, minors can still watch content on some services like YouTube—but cannot comment, post, or message.The ban applies to anyone considered “ordinarily a resident of Australia,” excluding short-term visitors.
Why Australia took this step
The ban is the culmination of a national campaign that gathered momentum over the past year. As reported by CNN and Australian media, the “Let Them Be Kids” movement—launched by News Corp along with parents and child-safety advocates—became a powerful catalyst. It highlighted stories of cyberbullying, grooming, self-harm, and suicide with alleged links to online behavior, sparking widespread debate about the true cost of adolescents’ digital immersion.A petition linked to the campaign, calling for the minimum age for social media access to be raised to 16, gathered more than 54,000 signatures. Meanwhile, several Australian states began experimenting with their own restrictions, pressuring the federal government to step in with a single nationwide framework.Growing academic and policy consensus added weight to the push. A series of reviews linked excessive screen exposure to diminished well-being, sleep deprivation, and vulnerability to exploitation. Minister for Communications Anika Wells summed up the sentiment in an earlier interview with CNN: “Ultimately we want to get them off the screens, back onto the footy pitch or back into an art class or interacting with each other in real life.”
How tech companies are responding
Tech companies have reacted with a mix of compliance, criticism, and hurried adaptation.Reddit voiced strong disagreement with the law, saying it “undermines everyone’s right to both free expression and privacy,” as reported on its official site. However, the platform is deploying a new age-prediction model and introducing additional safety controls for under-18 users worldwide.Meta (which operates Facebook, Instagram, and Threads) started removing under-16 users on 4 December. Accounts can be reinstated automatically when users turn 16; data will be stored or downloaded until then.Snapchat has opted for stricter consequences: it is suspending under-16 accounts for up to three years or until the user turns 16.YouTube is automatically signing out under-16 users and hiding their channels, though it will preserve data for reactivation.TikTok is deactivating all accounts belonging to under-16 Australians and using age-verification tools to assess users regardless of what email or name they originally used.Live-streaming platforms have also shifted strategy. Twitch will deactivate existing accounts held by under-16 Australians from 9 January, while Kick has introduced a mandatory “k-ID system” along with layered verification methods.X (formerly Twitter), one of the most vocal critics of the ban on free-speech grounds, announced at the last minute that it would comply. It described a “multi-faceted” verification strategy drawing on self-attested age, identity documents, email addresses, and account-creation dates. X said verification data will be destroyed within 31 days.
What this means for education, students, and families
From an education-policy lens, Australia’s move raises a critical question: How much digital autonomy should children have?Supporters argue that the ban gives students space to focus on academics, reduce harmful comparisons, reclaim attention spans, and mitigate cyberbullying—all issues schools grapple with daily. Teachers in Australia have long reported classroom disruptions linked to social media addiction; many hope the ban will ease some of the cognitive burden placed on teenagers.Critics, however, worry that withdrawing young people from online spaces could cut them off from peer groups, creative outlets, learning communities, and news ecosystems. For Gen-Z globally, social media is as much a social environment as a communication tool. Some Australian parents have told media outlets they fear the ban will push teens toward VPNs, alternative apps, or unregulated online spaces.For educators watching from India, the policy raises practical considerations. Should schools incorporate formal digital-wellness curricula? Should digital literacy be taught earlier, not later? Could a similar ban work in a country as large and diverse as India—or would it widen inequality by restricting digital access for some students while wealthier children bypass restrictions with ease?
What comes next
As platforms roll out new verification tools and compliance systems, Australia’s experiment will be closely watched. The coming months will reveal whether the ban meaningfully reduces harm—or whether tech-savvy teens simply find new pathways around restrictions.For now, one thing is clear: the world is entering a new phase of debate over children’s digital lives. And educators, policymakers, and parents everywhere will have to navigate a fast-changing landscape where the definition of “online safety” itself is being rewritten.
