Canberra, Australia. Australia said on Saturday it would double the maximum penalty for tech firms found to have systematically failed to uphold its social media ban for children, while also expanding the powers of its internet regulator. The move comes as evidence indicates the six-month-old ban has had limited impact on teenage social media use.
Higher penalties and stronger regulator powers
The government said the maximum penalty for systematic failures to enforce the ban would rise to A$99 million from A$49.5 million.
It also said it would strengthen the information-gathering powers of the eSafety Commissioner, allowing the regulator to compel social media companies to provide evidence of the steps they have taken to prevent users under 16 from obtaining accounts.
Platforms under investigation
The government reiterated that eSafety is actively investigating possible non-compliance by five platforms: Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, Google’s YouTube, Snap’s Snapchat and TikTok.
International attention and government response
Australia’s ban is being closely watched by countries considering similar measures because of concerns about the effects of social media on young people’s mental and physical health.
Britain said this month it planned broader restrictions that would also affect gaming and live-streaming platforms.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement that despite growing international momentum behind minimum age rules for social media, major technology companies were not doing enough to comply with the law.
“I’m heartened by the shift in conversation and the global momentum we’ve seen since introducing the social media minimum age, but it’s clear big tech are not doing enough to comply with the law – there are still too many children on social media,” Albanese said.
Evidence of continued underage use
The government statement said that since the ban was introduced, more than 5 million under-16 accounts had been deactivated or restricted.
However, studies have shown that age-assurance mechanisms introduced by technology companies, including selfie-based checks, can be easily bypassed by children, and that in many cases children were never asked to verify their age.
According to a study published this week in the British Medical Journal involving 408 adolescents, 85% of Australians aged 12 to 15 were still using social media three months after the ban took effect.
The study said two-thirds of underage users remained online by self-declaring an age above 16 or by submitting a selfie that platforms accepted as showing they were over 16.
