Australia investigates social media firms for under-16s ban compliance failures
Consensus Summary
Australia’s government is investigating Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, and YouTube for potential non-compliance with a landmark under-16 social media ban introduced in December 2024. The eSafety Commission’s compliance report reveals systemic failures, including platforms allowing repeated age verification attempts until success, inadequate measures to prevent banned users from creating new accounts, and poor reporting systems for underage users. Over 4.7 million accounts were deactivated in the first two days of the ban, with Meta reporting 550,000 closures and Snapchat/TikTok combined closing 665,000, but surveys show 31% of children still had accounts, down from 49% pre-ban. The ban covers 10 platforms and carries fines up to A$49.5 million for systemic breaches. Communications Minister Anika Wells has criticized the tech giants for ‘unacceptable’ practices, accusing them of undermining the law while claiming compliance. The eSafety Commissioner’s update is expected to detail further evidence of non-compliance, with the government signaling it will pursue penalties if companies fail to meet legal obligations. While the ban is framed as a global leader in child online safety, critics argue loopholes and weak enforcement undermine its effectiveness, leaving many underage users still active on restricted platforms.
✓ Verified by 2+ sources
Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Meta, TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, and YouTube are under investigation for potential non-compliance with Australia’s under-16 social media ban (Guardian, NewsCorpAU, ABC, SBS).
- The eSafety Commission’s compliance report (released 2025-04-XX) found platforms allow underage users to repeatedly attempt age verification until passing (Guardian, ABC, NewsCorpAU).
- Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube are the five platforms currently under investigation (Guardian, ABC, NewsCorpAU, SBS).
- Australia’s social media minimum age laws ban under-16s from holding accounts on 10 platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X, YouTube, Kick, and Reddit (Guardian, NewsCorpAU, ABC).
- Over 4.7 million accounts were deactivated in the first two days after the ban took effect on December 10, 2024 (Guardian, NewsCorpAU, ABC).
- Meta reported closing 550,000 accounts under the ban, while Snapchat and TikTok combined closed 665,000 (NewsCorpAU).
- The ban carries a maximum penalty of A$49.5 million (US$33.9 million) for systemic breaches (Guardian, NewsCorpAU, ABC).
- A survey of 900 Australian parents found 31% of children still had social media accounts after the ban, down from 49% before (Guardian).
- Of under-16s who had accounts before the ban, 70% maintained access on platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok (Guardian).
- The eSafety Commission alleges platforms have lax age verification systems, including facial recognition with high error rates near the 16-year-old cutoff (Guardian, ABC).
- Communications Minister Anika Wells stated platforms must obey Australian laws if they want to operate in the country (Guardian, NewsCorpAU, ABC, SBS).
- The eSafety Commissioner will release a compliance update on April 2025 (ABC, Guardian, NewsCorpAU).
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- The Guardian reported that 63.6% of parents said their children still had Facebook accounts post-ban, while 69.1% reported Instagram, 69.4% Snapchat, and 69.3% TikTok (Guardian).
- The Guardian cited eSafety’s claim that platforms encourage underage users to repeatedly attempt age assurance, even when their declared age is under 16 (Guardian).
- The Guardian noted the government’s promotion of the ban at the United Nations but acknowledged anecdotal reports undermined its success (Guardian).
- The Guardian mentioned the eSafety report stated the most common reason children retained accounts was that platforms had not yet prompted them for age verification (Guardian).
- The Guardian included a quote from Anika Wells: ‘None of this is impossible. None of this is even difficult for big tech who are innovative billion-dollar companies’ (Guardian).
- NewsCorpAU reported that Meta closed 550,000 accounts, while Snapchat and TikTok combined closed 665,000 (NewsCorpAU).
- NewsCorpAU stated the ban was implemented after News Corp’s ‘Let Them Be Kids’ campaign (NewsCorpAU).
- NewsCorpAU mentioned the definition of platforms covered by the ban would be updated to include those with infinite scroll, feedback features, and time-limited elements (NewsCorpAU).
- NewsCorpAU noted the 10 platforms covered by the ban will be assessed against the new rule, excluding Discord, Google Classroom, WhatsApp, and Roblox (NewsCorpAU).
- ABC reported eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant said there were ‘teething issues’ as platforms deployed new age-assurance technologies (ABC).
- ABC included a quote from Julie Inman-Grant: ‘If there’s egregious noncompliance, I think that will be pretty obvious pretty quickly and then we start an investigation’ (ABC).
- ABC mentioned the government’s claim that platforms had made ‘meaningful attempts’ to remove underage users in the first two days of the ban (ABC).
- ABC reported the ban was introduced on December 10, 2024, and teens bragged about still accessing accounts (ABC).
- SBS reported platforms were making it easy to find ways to circumvent age-assurance measures (SBS).
Contradictions
Conflicting information between sources:
- The Guardian reported 31% of parents said their children still had social media accounts after the ban, while NewsCorpAU did not provide a comparable post-ban percentage (Guardian vs NewsCorpAU).
- The Guardian stated 70% of under-16s maintained access on platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok, but NewsCorpAU did not specify this exact percentage (Guardian vs NewsCorpAU).
- The Guardian mentioned the government declined to provide a disaggregated number of accounts removed from each platform, while NewsCorpAU reported specific numbers for Meta, Snapchat, and TikTok (Guardian vs NewsCorpAU).
- The Guardian reported the eSafety report found 48.5% of parents said their children still had YouTube accounts post-ban, but NewsCorpAU did not mention YouTube’s specific compliance data (Guardian vs NewsCorpAU).
- The Guardian included a quote from Anika Wells about ‘unacceptable’ systems, while NewsCorpAU used the term ‘potential noncompliance’ without the same level of condemnation (Guardian vs NewsCorpAU).
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