Australia’s world-first social media ban for those under the age of 16 is in full effect – but many teenagers have said they believe it’s pointless.
Unlike some of their peers, 14-year-old Sydney residents Claire Ni and Stella Pieterse still have access to their TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat accounts – for now.
Some 200,000 accounts have already been deactivated on TikTok alone, the government said, with more to be blocked in the coming days.
However, Ni is not worried about what will happen when her accounts are deactivated.
‘It’s just kind of pointless,’ she said. ‘We’re just going to create new ways to get on these platforms, so what’s the point?’
Pieterse said many of her peers have already started looking at other social media platforms as alternatives, such as BeReal and Lemon8.
‘Maybe it will make people go outside more, but not really,’ Pieterse said.
In a video message, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urged children to ‘start a new sport, new instrument, or read that book that has been sitting there for some time on your shelf,’ ahead of Australia’s summer school break starting later this month.
A precise list of social media sites – Snapchat, TikTok, X, Reddit, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Kick and Twitch – are legally required to bar access to Aussie under-16s.
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Issues with enforcing the ban
Even as the law kicks in, there are questions over whether it is enforceable, amid reports of children using basic techniques such as holding up a photograph to beat facial recognition software.
And many kids have been able to still access their feeds, as the government works to enforce the ban fully.
One mum from New South Wales said her 14-year-old son still has access to Snapchat, after changing his age and passing a selfie age confirmation.
She told ABC: ‘I went into his Snapchat account to change his birthday back, and it won’t let me as you can only change your date of birth a limited number of times.
‘How can this be allowed? How did he get his age confirmed at 23 when he is only 14?’
Age estimation for safeguarding to keep kids from social media also appears to be flawed.
One parent said his 11-year-old son opened TikTok and saw this message: ‘The social media ban has come into effect. Your age is estimated to be 18 years old.’
Some are reportedly using VPNs and fake IDs to gain access to the internet.
So far, around 200,000 TikTok accounts have been banned for children under the age of 16.
Jake Moore, a Global Cybersecurity Advisor, told Metro: ‘Although this is a huge step in the right direction, banning under-16s completely from social media could be extremely challenging to implement.
‘There are already indications that some kids have been able to bypass the restrictions in place so these will need to be ironed out. It highlights how important it is to get the features right first time especially when the rest of the world is watching to see how impactful the new restrictions are.
‘Regulators will need to remain firm with any accounts set up by children and remove them as quickly as possible if they want to call this a success.’
What other countries could ban social media for children?
Denmark, New Zealand and Malaysia have signalled they may study or emulate Australia’s model, making the country a test case for how far governments can push age-gating without stifling speech or innovation.
Campaigners there and in the UK have massive support for the initiative to get kids offline.
According to a YouGov survey published last week, a significant majority of the British public agrees that a ban could be beneficial.
It found that 74% of people support blocking under-16s from sites like TikTok and Instagram, with just 19% saying they opposed it.
In some respects, the UK did pre-empt Australia with its own law to protect young people online in July, when the age verification aspect of the Online Safety Act came into effect.
As a result of that legislation, X – one of the UK’s most popular social media sites, which also allows adult content, currently requires users to verify their age before they can access the site.
A UK government spokesperson said they had already taken ‘some of the boldest steps globally to ensure online content is genuinely age appropriate’ – but that the results from Australia were being watched closely.
They added: ‘It’s important we protect children while letting them benefit safely from the digital world, without cutting off essential services or isolating the most vulnerable.
‘The government is closely monitoring Australia’s approach to age restrictions. When it comes to children’s safety, nothing is off the table, but any action must be based on robust evidence.’
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