Australia on Wednesday became the first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking access to platforms including TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.
Ten of the biggest platforms were ordered to block children from midnight (1:00 p.m. GMT Tuesday) or face fines of up to A$49.5 million ($33 million) under the new law, which drew criticism from big tech companies and free speech advocates but was welcomed by many parents and children’s advocates.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called it a “proud day” for families and presented the law as proof that policymakers can curb online harm that has overtaken traditional safeguards.
“This is the day that Australian families take back power from these big tech companies,” Albanese said. ABC News.
“New technologies can do wonderful things, but we need to make sure that humans control their own destiny and that’s what this is about,” he said.
In a video message, Albanese urged children to “start a new sport, a new instrument or read that book that’s been sitting there on your shelf for a while”, ahead of Australia’s summer holidays which begin later this month.
In the hours before the ban took effect, many of the estimated one million children affected by the legislation began posting messages saying goodbye to their online followers.
“No more social media… no more contact with the rest of the world,” one teen wrote on TikTok.
“#seeyouwhenim16,” said another.
The rollout caps a year of debate over whether any country could practically stop children from using the platforms embedded in daily life and marks the start of a live test for governments around the world frustrated by the slowness of social media companies to implement harm-reduction measures.
Albanese’s center-left government proposed the landmark law citing research demonstrating the harmful mental health effects of excessive social media use among young adolescents, including misinformation, bullying and harmful portrayals of body image.
Several countries, from Denmark to New Zealand to Malaysia, have indicated they might study or emulate the Australian model, making the country a test case for how far governments can push age limits without stifling speech or innovation.
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“This is not our choice, this is what Australian law requires,” X said on its website.
“X automatically excludes anyone who does not meet our age criteria.”
Australia said the initial list of covered platforms would change as new products emerge and younger users migrate.
The companies told Canberra they would deploy a combination of age inference – estimating a user’s age from their behavior – and selfie-based age estimation, as well as checks that could include uploaded identity documents or linked bank account details.
For social media companies, the implementation marks a new era of structural stagnation as user numbers stagnate and time spent on platforms declines, studies show.
The platforms say they earn little from advertising to under-16s, but warn the ban disrupts the pipeline of future users. Just before the ban came into force, 86 per cent of Australians aged eight to 15 used social media, the government said.
Some young people have warned that banning social media could isolate people.
“It’s going to be worse for gay people and people with special interests, I guess, because it’s the only way for them to find their community,” Annie Wang, 14, said before the ban.
“Some people also use it to express their feelings and talk to people to get help… So I feel like it will be good for some people, but for others it will make their mental health worse.”
