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The Latest Breaking News from eSafety

Major platforms have the tools to stop sexual extortion, but they’re not using them – new report

It begins with a follow request. An 18-year-old male accepts one on Instagram from an attractive female stranger. She likes his posts, messages him first, friendly, flattering, quick to move the chat to a messaging app.

The Conversation

Are VPNs under threat in Australia? FOI documents reveal plans to block age verification workarounds

Australia's eSafety Commissioner is planning to investigate how VPNs are used to bypass age verification checks, raising fresh concerns over the future of digital privacy tools.

TechRadar

Young men report more ‘sextortion’ than any other age group, Australia’s online safety watchdog says

In six months last year, more than 2,000 such complaints were made to eSafety

The Guardian - AU

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Use of VPNs to bypass age checks on porn sites to be investigated by Australia’s eSafety watchdog

Online safety regulator monitoring compliance of top 30 adult sites after age verification laws introduced in March

The Guardian - AU

Social media platforms ‘monetise gore and fringe content’, eSafety regulator tells antisemitism commission

Julie Inman Grant singles out X when giving evidence to royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion

The Guardian - AU

'Be vigilant': PM swipes hard on teen social media ban

After widespread reports Australia's world-first social media ban is being flouted, parliament will begin debating a beefing-up of the overhaul.

AAP

The government is ‘doubling down’ on its social media ban. But bigger penalties for platforms aren’t enough

The Australian government has announced it is “doubling down” on social media platforms that aren’t complying with age restrictions for under-16s.

The Conversation

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Australia to double potential fines for Facebook and Instagram over child social media accounts

Australia plans to double potential fines for social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, who fail to prevent Australian children from holding accounts

The Independent UK

New study shows 1 in 7 people have been victims of sextortion – and AI is making it worse

The Australian eSafety Commissioner recently launched a new campaign to raise awareness of sexual extortion, or “sextortion”. Targeted primarily at men, the campaign features AI-generated videos of attractive women attempting to lure men into financial scams.

The Conversation

FED:How sextortion scammers get nude images of victims

The fear of having personal explicit photos shared with family and friends strikes panic in victims of sextortion - and that's exactly what scammers want.

AAP

How sextortion scammers get nude images of victims

The fear of having personal explicit photos shared with family and friends strikes panic in victims of sextortion - and that's exactly what scammers want.

AAP

Elon Musk's X hits out at landmark online safety laws

Billionaire Elon Musk's X Corp claims Australia's landmark safety regulations do not apply to its social media platform.

The Canberra Times

FED:Jury out on child ban compliance by social media giants

Social media firms are improving efforts to meet Australia's under-16 ban, but whether they're compliant is still under review, the eSafety commissioner says.

AAP

Jury out on child ban compliance by social media giants

Social media firms are improving efforts to meet Australia's under-16 ban, but whether they're compliant is still under review, the eSafety commissioner says.

AAP

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International Business Times UK

The 45-Day Countdown: Elon Musk's X Ordered to Pay Hundreds of Thousands for Ghosting Child Safety Watchdog

X Corp, formerly Twitter, has been fined A$650,000 by an Australian court for failing to comply with child safety regulations, highlighting the importance of transparency in tech companies.

The Economic Times

Australian court upholds $465,000 fine against Elon Musk's X

An Australian federal court upheld on Thursday a fine against Elon Musk's X for failing to comply with child internet safety regulations, capping a three year legal fight between the tech giant and Canberra. A federal court ruled in October 2024 that X was required to respond to the notice…

The Independent UK

Australian judge fines X $465,000 for online safety breach after 3-year court battle

An Australian judge has fined X Corp. $465,000 for failing to provide information to an online safety watchdog about how it tackled child sexual exploitation content

AAP

Online safety leader stares down abuse, death threats

Australia's eSafety commissioner has endured significant online threats since implementing the social media ban, but says they only encourage her to "dig in".

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The Guardian - AU

‘Gamified’ versions of Bondi terror attack circulated online, Australia’s eSafety commissioner says

The online safety regulator also identified bystander videos of the antisemitic massacre on X, Instagram, Threads and some fringe websites

The Guardian - AU

Australia wants to sell its social media ban to the world – but are the measures even working?

Two-thirds of teenagers are still on social media platforms included in the ban, according to the eSafety commissioner

Euronews

Australia warns social media platforms of 'major gaps' in under-16 ban enforcement

The eSafety Commissioner identified 'poor practices' from social media companies, such as platforms allowing unlimited attempts for a user to pass their age assurance methods.

The Guardian - AU

Two-thirds of under-16s with accounts on Instagram, Snapchat or TikTok kept access despite ban

Nearly 70% of under-16s with accounts on Instagram, Snapchat or TikTok had maintained access, survey finds

The Conversation

Social media giants are not complying with under-16s social media ban, new report finds

Nearly four months into Australia’s social media ban for under-16s, the online regulator today released its first detailed compliance update report on how the world-first policy is progressing.

The Guardian - AU

Anonymous $200,000 donation to charity providing free meals – as it happened

This blog is now closed

The Guardian - AU

Child abuse material ‘systemic’ on Elon Musk’s X amid Grok scandal, Australian online safety regulator warned

Exclusive: eSafety commission pointed to Musk’s promise that ‘removing child exploitation is priority #1’ in letter obtained by Guardian Australia

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