Australia to Ban Social Media for Under-16s to Support Youth Mental Health

Australia has introduced a sweeping measure to protect young people’s mental health by restricting social media access for those under 16, placing the onus on social media platforms—not parents—to prevent underage users. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that companies failing to enforce these new age restrictions will face heavy penalties. “Social platforms must demonstrate reasonable steps to prevent access,” he stated, underscoring that penalties would target companies rather than families.

This restriction forms part of a broader government agenda to tackle the influence of social media on mental health, including addressing misinformation. Australia has already taken significant tech regulation steps, such as requiring Google and Facebook to compensate for news content and challenging X Corp in court for its response to online content issues.

These measures echo similar initiatives in Europe, where France and the UK are also enforcing social media age restrictions, further aligning with the EU’s GDPR. However, enforcing age restrictions globally remains complex due to varied regulations and technical challenges in age verification.

Source: Business Standard

Photo Credit: Business Standard