Australia's teen social media ban fails to clear first hurdle in age checks, says study

Australia's ​online platforms are stumbling at the very first step in implementing age checks for users, rendering a world-first teen social media ban ineffective, a ​study by a team that advised the government's rollout of the curbs found.

Since December, Australia's new social media law has mandated that platforms including Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube bar people under 16 years from having accounts. Operators must take "reasonable steps" to comply, and the government has recommended using multiple checks to determine users' age.