Australia Increases Fines as Social Media Age Bans Fail

The Government of Australia has doubled maximum fines for social media platforms to 99 million Australian dollars after studies revealed the nation's ban on social media for children under 16 is largely ineffective. Enacted in December 2025, the law requires platforms to bar underage users, yet a shadow trial by software firm KJR found that 50 test accounts claiming to be 16 were created across nine platforms without a single request for age proof. Only the Australian platform Kick required verification during account creation.

Concurrent research by the Cybersafety Research Center found that over 60% of child safety features on TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube fail to work as promised. These failures include the inability to prevent adults from messaging minors and the failure of search restrictions for self-harm and eating disorder content. The center noted systemic issues with the design and implementation of these safety tools.

Tech giants including Meta, Google, and Snap Inc. have disputed the findings, arguing that the tests did not reflect typical user behavior or regulatory guidance on behavioral indicators. While Minister for Communications Anika Wells accused platforms of doing the bare minimum to comply, the eSafety commissioner maintains that platforms possess the technology and resources necessary to prevent children under 16 from accessing their services.