Australian Senate passes social media ban for children under 16
28 November 2024, 15:24
The law will the world’s first and will make platforms, such as TikTok and Instagram, liable for big fines.
The Australian Senate passed a social media ban for young children on Thursday that will soon become a world-first law.
The law will make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (£25 million) for systemic failures to prevent children younger than 16 from holding accounts.
The Senate passed the bill 34 votes to 19. The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved the legislation 102 votes to 13 on Wednesday.
The House has yet to endorse opposition amendments made in the Senate, but that is a formality since the government has already agreed they will pass.
The platforms will have one year to work out how they could implement the ban before penalties are enforced.
Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook and Instagram, said the legislation had been “rushed”.
Digital Industry Group Inc, an advocate for the platforms in Australia, said questions remain about the law’s impact on children, its technical foundations and scope.
“The social media ban legislation has been released and passed within a week and, as a result, no one can confidently explain how it will work in practice – the community and platforms are in the dark about what exactly is required of them,” Digi managing director Sunita Bose said in a statement.
The amendments bolster privacy protections. Platforms would not be allowed to compel users to provide government-issued identity documents including passports or driver’s licenses, nor could they demand digital identification through a government system.
The House is scheduled to pass the amendments on Friday.
Critics of the legislation fear that banning young children from social media will impact the privacy of users who must establish they are older than 16.
While the major parties support the ban, many child welfare and mental health advocates are concerned about unintended consequences.
But online safety campaigner Sonya Ryan, whose 15-year-old daughter Carly was murdered by a 50-year-old paedophile who pretended to be a teenager online, described the Senate vote as a “monumental moment in protecting our children from horrendous harms online”.
“It’s too late for my daughter, Carly, and the many other children who have suffered terribly and those who have lost their lives in Australia, but let us stand together on their behalf and embrace this together,” she told the Associated Press in an email.
Wayne Holdsworth, whose teenage son Mac took his own life after falling victim to an online sextortion scam, had advocated for the age restriction and took pride in its passage.
“I have always been a proud Australian, but for me subsequent to today’s Senate decision, I am bursting with pride,” Mr Holdsworth told the AP in an email.
Critics argue the government is attempting to convince parents it is protecting their children ahead of a general election due by May.
The government hopes that voters will reward it for responding to parents’ concerns about their children’s addiction to social media. Some argue the legislation could cause more harm than it prevents.
Criticisms include that the legislation was rushed through parliament without adequate scrutiny, is ineffective, poses privacy risks for all users, and undermines the authority of parents to make decisions for their children.
Opponents also argue the ban would isolate children, deprive them of the positive aspects of social media, drive them to the dark web, discourage children too young for social media to report harm, and reduce incentives for platforms to improve online safety.
