The ban, which came into force on 10 December 2024, applies to major platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, X, YouTube, Threads, Reddit, Kick, and Twitch. 7 million social media accounts belonging to under-16s had been stopped. Meta began closing teen accounts from 4 December and blocked approximately 550,000 accounts in the first days.
The purpose of the ban is to protect children and young people from harmful content and other online risks, according to multiple reports. A 2025 government-commissioned study found 96% of children aged 10-15 used social media, and 7 out of 10 had been exposed to harmful content, including misogynistic, violent material, and content promoting eating disorders and suicide. One in seven children reported experiencing grooming-type behaviour from adults or older children, and more than half said they had been victims of cyberbullying.
I scanned my face and the system said I looked older.
A 2022 study found nearly half of adolescents reported social media making them feel worse about their body image. A New Mexico jury found YouTube and Meta liable for creating addictive platforms harmful to young people's mental health; both plan to appeal. The ban is an amendment to the Online Safety Act 2021, passed on 29 November 2024.
5 million for serious or repeated breaches. Age assurance technologies may include government IDs, face or voice recognition, or age inference, and platforms cannot rely on self-certification or parental vouching for age verification. YouTube Kids, Google Classroom, and WhatsApp are not included in the ban, and under-16s can still view most content on platforms that do not require an account.
The use of AI for age verification is a disadvantage because AI is not smart enough yet.
Children and parents are not punished for infringing the ban. In the days following the ban, teenagers worked to circumvent restrictions using methods like using a parent's face ID, printed mesh face masks, or VPNs. According to Aftonbladet, 13-year-old Alexis Ujong described bypassing the ban on every app because she looks old, and 14-year-old Husandi Bendiyawattha Gamage described AI age verification as a disadvantage because AI is not smart enough yet.
Many platforms use a type of face scanning to verify users' ages, and testimonies from other young Australians on social media confirm that many have bypassed the ban. A survey by the Molly Rose Foundation of 1,050 Australians aged 12-15 found more than 60% of teens who had pre-ban accounts still had access to at least one platform. TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram have retained more than half of their under-16 users, and about two-thirds of young users say platforms have taken 'no action' to remove or reactivate pre-existing accounts.
I bypass the ban on every app because I look old.
According to Aftonbladet, Caroline Thain, chief advisor at Headspace, described that many young people have circumvented the ban and the government has admitted the legislation has been flawed. The government has released statistics showing that around seven out of ten young people have returned to social media, according to Thain. A Headspace survey before the ban showed that about one third would try to circumvent the ban.
The Australian internet regulator has called for an investigation into the five largest social media platforms over potential breaches. Preliminary analysis from eSafety shows platforms are making meaningful attempts to prevent under-16s from holding accounts, and the eSafety website recorded more than one million visits since the education campaign launch. Snapchat allows verification via bank accounts, photo ID, or selfies.
Many young people have circumvented the ban and the government has admitted the legislation has been flawed.
There were initial fears that age assurance technologies may wrongly block adults or fail to spot underage users. The ban was influenced by South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas, who was urged by his wife to read 'The Anxious Generation' and take action. Former High Court chief justice Robert French provided a 267-page proposal in September 2024.
Community support grew after stories of parents who lost children to suicide due to social media bullying. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was moved by a letter from Kelly O'Brien, whose 12-year-old daughter Charlotte died by suicide after bullying. At a UN General Assembly side event in September 2025, a mother spoke of her daughter's suicide as 'death by bullying ...
We want our kids to have a childhood and parents to know we have their backs.
enabled by social media', gaining support from world leaders. South Australia initially proposed a state-based ban for under-14s with parental consent for 14-15-year-olds. The act is being challenged in the High Court by the Digital Freedom Project.
Critics have called for the ban to extend to online gaming sites like Roblox and Discord, and Roblox announced in November 2025 it would introduce age checks on some features. S. states.
According to Unicef, work on similar rules is ongoing in 35 countries worldwide and the EU. Sweden appointed an inquiry into an age limit for social media in October 2024 to strengthen protection for children's health and safety in digital environments, with a first partial report due in June 2025. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said that 15 years could be a natural age limit.