Australia’s world-first social media ban for children has taken effect, with throngs of teenagers waking up to find their accounts have gone dark.
Others tell BBC they have already snuck past barriers and will continue scrolling and posting freely until they are caught.
The new law means social media firms – including Meta, TikTok and YouTube – must take “reasonable steps” to ensure Australians aged under 16 don’t hold accounts on their platforms.
The ban, eyed with excitement by global leaders and trepidation by tech companies, was justified as necessary to protect children from harmful content and algorithms – though critics have argued blanket prohibition is neither practical nor wise.
This landmark policy has been one of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s pet projects, and speaking to media on Wednesday he said he believed it has the power to change lives around the world.
“This is a day in which my pride to be prime minister of Australia has never been greater,” he said, flanked by parents and media figures who had pushed for the ban.
“This is Australia showing enough is enough.”
“I think it will go [down] with the other great reforms that Australia has led the world on.”
Various governments, from the US state of Florida to the European Union, have been experimenting with limiting children’s use of social media. But, along with a higher age limit of 16, Australia is the first jurisdiction to deny an exemption for parental approval in a policy like this – making its laws the world’s strictest.
Countries like Denmark, Malaysia, Singapore, Greece and Brazil are among those who have said they’re looking at Australia as a test case.
The Australian government has named 10 social media platforms as a start, including all of the most popular ones, but has also warned others it’s coming for them next.
Online safety regulator, Julie Inman Grant, said her agency will start checking compliance from Thursday. Parents and children won’t be liable under this law, only social media firms, which face fines of up to A$49.5m ($33m, £24.5m) for serious breaches.
“Tomorrow, I will issue information notices to the 10 major platforms and we will provide information to the public before Christmas on how these age restrictions are being implemented and whether, preliminarily, we see them working,” she said.
There is broad agreement in Australia that social media companies are failing to shield users, particularly children, from harm on their platforms.
Tasmanian student Florence Brodribb – known as Flossie – told the press she believed the ban would help kids like her grow up “healthier, safer, kinder, and more connected”.
“Our brains are going through one of the biggest rewiring periods of our lives… Social media is designed to take advantage of that,” the 12-year-old said.
“Young people deserve better than that.”
Polling shows the ban is wildly popular with parents, who hope it will also help reduce cyber bullying and child exploitation. But it is far less popular with children.
Backed by some mental health advocates, many have argued it robs young people of connection – particularly those from LGBTQ+, neurodivergent or rural communities – and will leave them less equipped to tackle the realities of life on the web.
“My closest friend would be 30km (18.6 miles) away from me… and my next closest friend is probably over 100km,” 15-year-old Breanna told the BBC.
“When our Snapchat is taken away, so is our communication.”
Experts are also worried kids are going to circumvent the ban with relative ease – either by tricking the technology that’s performing the age checks, or by finding other, potentially less safe, places on the net to gather.
Many critics have been advocating instead for better education and more moderation, with Sydney father-of-two Ian among them.
“There’s a good idea behind [the policy], but is it the right way to go about it? I’m not sure,” he told the BBC.
Tech firms, which are desperate to stop other countries from implementing similar bans, have argued the government is overreaching, and pointed to recently strengthened parental controls on many of their platforms as a solution.
While the government has insisted the social media companies have the money and the technology to make this ban happen, it has also sought to manage expectations.
“I’ve been asked… what will success look like? Success is the fact that it’s happening. Success is the fact that we’re having this discussion,” Albanese said on Wednesday.
“We do acknowledge it won’t be perfect and we’ll work through it.”
Ms Inman Grant said Australia is playing the long game, and while stories of kids getting round the ban will make headlines, regulators will not be deterred.
“The world will follow, like nations once followed our lead on plane tobacco packaging, gun reform, water, and sun safety,” she said.
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