Australia’s online safety regulator has told Meta, Google, TikTok, and other platforms to prepare for a new law banning social media use for those under 16, set to take effect on December 10.

ESafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant said tech companies must deactivate accounts belonging to Australians under 16 and prevent children from bypassing the restriction.

The law requires companies such as Meta, Snapchat, and X to enforce the age limit or face penalties up to A$50 million (US$33 million).

A self-declared age will not be sufficient verification.

About 95% of Australians aged 10 to 15 currently have at least one social media account, and a government-funded trial found that current technology can reliably verify user age.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Age verification technology remains imperfect despite regulatory confidence

Australia’s government trial concluded that age verification is technologically feasible with “no significant technological barriers,” but the reality appears more complex1.

Even the most advanced systems show limitations. Yoti’s age verification service, which regulators like Ofcom recognize as effective, achieves 99.3% accuracy specifically for users aged 13-172. This means that even with advanced technology, roughly 1 in 140 underage users could potentially bypass the system.

Meanwhile, Meta is still actively trialing third-party age-checking solutions using video analysis, suggesting that major platforms haven’t yet settled on definitive verification methods3.

The challenge becomes more pronounced when considering that current social media platforms primarily rely on self-reported ages, which are easily manipulated by underage users4.

The A$50 million penalty for non-compliance in Australia creates enormous pressure for platforms to implement systems that may not be foolproof1.

2️⃣ Australia’s ban signals coordinated global shift toward age restrictions

Australia’s under-16 ban isn’t occurring in isolation. It’s part of a broader international regulatory movement targeting social media access for minors.

France and Greece are supporting proposals to restrict access for users under 15, while at least 19 U.S. states have enacted laws requiring ID verification for accessing certain online content35.