Australia is gearing up for a major shift in how young people engage with social media, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese leading the charge to ban access for anyone under 16. This initiative is part of a broader effort to address growing concerns about youth mental health and the impact of excessive screen time.
But how will this ban actually work, and when can we expect it to roll out?
Here, we’re going to answer all your questions about this wild turn of events.
How will the social media ban work?
The government is set to introduce this age restriction soon, with a draft bill expected to hit Parliament before the next election. While the final age limit hasn’t been confirmed yet, the results from ongoing age-verification trials will be crucial in shaping the legislation.
Albanese has been vocal about the worries parents have regarding their kids’ online habits, stating, “Parents are worried sick about this. We know they’re working without a map. No generation has faced this challenge before,” per ABC.
Interestingly, Albanese’s push for a ban follows similar calls from opposition leader Peter Dutton. He had promised to implement a social media ban for children under 16 within the first 100 days of a Coalition government if elected.
What will be the age cut-off for the social media ban?
The Federal Government is yet to specify what exact ages the ban will impact, however the Prime Minister did give a vague range where the cut-off could land.
“The right age is between 14 and 16,” the PM said on NOVA FM.
Albanese then hinted that he would prefer the age to be on the “higher limit” — meaning 16-years-old would be his desired age for allowing Australia’s teens to access social media.
“That’s where I’m at. But I want to make sure that we don’t end up with different systems in different states,” he said.
Though Albo’s personal preference does carry some weight as the PM, the age cut-off for Australia’s social media ban will be revealed after the policy is extensively trialled.
What social media platforms will the restrictions cover?
This is an important question that the government needs to consider as it applies the ban, because there is a practically endless amount of social media platforms, apps, and websites that it could need to cover.
Interestingly, when speaking about what social media platforms will be restricted, the government has included that “other digital platforms” will be restricted too.
This vague wording seems to imply that the ban will not only impact social media platforms, like Facebook or Instagram, but could also include things like online games (Roblox, Minecraft, etc) and sites like YouTube.
If we extrapolate from this incredibly wide net of things that come under the “social media and other digital platforms” umbrella, here’s a list of all the different sites, apps, and games that children could be banned from visiting and posting to:
- X (Twitter)
- Snapchat
- YouTube
- Quora
- TikTok
- LinkedIn (which kids are massive fans of)
- Threads
- Twitch
- Discord
- Roblox
- Minecraft
- Playstation Network
Honestly, the list could hypothetically go on wayyyyyyyyy longer. This is just to show quickly how huge the scale of the restrictions could be!
What will the age verification trials involve?
To support this initiative, the government will be testing various age verification technologies. This could involve everything from biometric face-scanning to requiring users to upload identification.
Right now the focus is on tools that could be used to preventing children from accessing pornography and limiting teenagers aged 13 to 16 from using social media sites.
While it sounds high-tech, there are significant privacy concerns surrounding these methods, and questions around whether they’ll effectively keep kids off social media.
Who will draw up the legislation?
The proposed legislation will be developed in collaboration with state and territory governments, drawing inspiration from recent drafts in South Australia that suggest banning access for those 13 and younger.
The aim is to create a consistent national standard for social media access among minors. Albanese believes in the importance of this initiative, saying, “The safety and mental and physical health of our young people is paramount. Parents want their kids off their phones and on the footy field. So do I.”
What has the reaction been?
While the concern for teenage use of social media is very real, there are people that are concerned that a blanket ban for young people may not be effective and may not be the governments place.
One user on X commented, “I think it should be the parents decision not the government’s.”
Others are concerned that the ban will drive teenagers to more underground and potentially more dangerous parts of the internet.
“Instead of social media innovation to protect children or parents protecting their kids, Gov encourages kids to lie online and drive social media use underground,” and X user said.
But there has been some support for the ban, “Let’s absolutely protect our kids,” says one X user.
As the Albanese government moves forward with this initiative, the conversation about how to protect young people while allowing them to engage with the digital world responsibly is more important than ever.
It’ll be interesting to see how this all unfolds and what it means for the future of social media in Australia!
Lead image: Getty/iStock Images
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