Millions of Australian Children and Teens Lose Access to Social Media Accounts as Landmark Ban Takes Effect

According to Rokna, citing The Guardian, from Wednesday, platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, Snapchat, Reddit, Kick, Twitch, and Threads are expected to have removed accounts belonging to under-16 users in Australia and to prevent these users from creating new accounts. Companies failing to comply could face fines of up to $49.5 million.

Implementation of the ban has encountered some initial challenges. Reports have emerged of under-16 users passing facial age verification tests, though the government has cautioned that the law may not be flawless from the outset. All listed platforms except X had confirmed by Tuesday that they would comply. eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said she recently discussed compliance measures with X, although the platform had yet to inform its users of its policies. Bluesky, an alternative to X, also announced a ban for under-16s, despite being deemed “low risk” due to its small Australian user base of approximately 50,000.

In recent weeks, children have been completing age verification checks, updating phone numbers, and preparing for the deactivation of their accounts. Kieran Donovan, CEO and co-founder of age verification service k-ID, said his platform had conducted hundreds of thousands of checks during this period. k-ID is currently used by Snapchat among others.

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Parents have expressed a wide range of reactions to the ban. One parent told Guardian Australia that their 15-year-old daughter was “very distressed” because many of her 14–15-year-old friends had been verified as 18 by Snapchat. They feared she would be excluded from social interactions on the app. Another parent said the law had forced them to teach their child how to bypass restrictions using VPNs and other methods, including setting up an adult YouTube account and bypassing TikTok’s age verification.

Some parents, however, welcomed the move, stating the ban “can’t come soon enough.” One said their daughter was “completely addicted” to social media, and the new law would provide a framework to limit her use.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese acknowledged the law would not be perfect from day one but emphasized its broader message. “Australia sets the legal drinking age at 18 because society recognizes the benefits of a clear standard for individuals and the community. Teenagers occasionally finding ways around the rules does not reduce the value of having clear regulations,” he said.

Surveys consistently indicate that two-thirds of voters support raising the minimum social media age to 16. Opposition leaders, including Sussan Ley, have recently expressed concerns, despite previously supporting the legislation in parliament. The ban has attracted global attention, with countries such as Malaysia, Denmark, and Norway considering similar measures. The European Union has passed a resolution encouraging comparable restrictions, and the UK government is monitoring Australia’s approach closely.

From Thursday, Inman Grant will issue notices to the affected platforms to assess the progress of enforcement, including questions on account removals, compliance challenges, prevention of circumvention, and the functionality of reporting and appeals processes. Albanese confirmed that the results of this review would be publicly available.

An independent academic advisory group will evaluate the ban’s short-, medium-, and long-term impacts, including both benefits and potential unintended consequences. Areas of focus will include sleep, physical activity, reading habits, medication use, and academic performance, among others. Concerns remain about teens migrating to “darker” areas of the internet, using VPNs, or switching to alternative platforms.

Snapchat reported that some affected teens shared personal contact information on their profiles before account deactivation. The platform urged teens not to do so. Inman Grant also contacted 15 additional companies not initially included in the ban, asking them to self-assess their obligations. Rising apps such as Yope and Lemon8, which gained popularity as alternatives, were among those approached.