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The Latest Breaking News from eSafety

Australia’s digital duty of care bill needs these three changes to tackle online child sexual exploitation

On September 10, the Australian Federal Police announced the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation received 100,194 reports of online child sexual exploitation in 2025–26. That is about 275 a day – a 21% rise over the year before, and up from 36,600 four years ago.

The Conversation

Australia’s social media ban has an enforcement problem. These new laws aim to fix it

In the same week the federal government is preparing to introduce its landmark digital duty of care legislation, it is also returning to some unfinished business: strengthening its social media age restrictions.

The Conversation

Call to embed algorithm opt-in for social 'cesspit'

The Greens are vowing to hold back laws to strengthen Australia's under-16s social media ban until the government introduces digital duty-of-care measures.

AAP

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Smartglasses should automatically blur people’s faces while filming, Australia’s online safety regulator says

Smartglasses with cameras can benefit the vision impaired but companies might pit ‘accessibility benefits against safety and privacy’, eSafety says

The Guardian - AU

A Canberra school has removed all photos of students from their website. Why?

Some ACT schools are rethinking student photos after new AI warnings.

The Canberra Times

Roblox has been put on notice yet again over child safety concerns. What do parents need to know?

Online gaming platform Roblox has given a court-enforceable undertaking to Australia’s online safety regulator to do more “to protect children from grooming, sexual exploitation and abuse”.

The Conversation

Australia secures court-enforceable child safety undertaking from Roblox

The agreement marks an incremental win for the eSafety Commissioner as ‌it seeks ⁠to use ⁠its enforcement powers to make online platforms comply with Australia's sweeping child-safety rules, including a landmark ban on social media for children under 16.

The Economic Times

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Roblox commits to privacy overhaul after eSafety discovers adults can contact children via gaming platform

Regulator says verifiable safety measures are ‘critical’ to the online service’s viability

The Guardian - AU

Tech giants unaware how many children on social media

Social media conglomerates have been asked about their failure to comply with Australia's social media ban and been unable to answer a particular question.

AAP

Elon Musk lands court win over frequent eSafety foe

Allowing users to slide into each other's DMs does not make X a messaging platform, the Elon Musk-owned platform has successfully argued.

AAP

A social media ban for Canadian kids sounds simple, but Bill C-34 has major limitations

Introduced in June 2026 by Canadian Culture Minister Marc Miller, Bill C-34 would ban social media for users under 16.

The Conversation

Activists faced 'hellish fury' over violent game ban

Gamers unleashed a torrent of online abuse against five female activists to silence them after they stopped the sale of rape, incest and torture games.

AAP

This man was secretly snapped by someone with smartglasses. He’s not alone in calling that a violation of privacy

The backlash to what some dub ‘pervert glasses’ is growing – but people living with disabilities point out the new tech can also be life-changing

The Guardian - AU

More than half of children and teens are using AI for personal reasons. This comes with risks

New data released this week shows 54% of Australian children and teens are using artificial intelligence tools for personal and social reasons.

The Conversation

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Bangkok Post

Most Australian teens still on social media three months after ban

SYDNEY — More ‌than eight in 10 Australian teenagers were still using social media three months after the government's landmark ban on the platforms for under-16s took effect because the tech firms failed to implement effective age checks, the country's internet regulator has found.

The Economic Times

Most Australian teens still on social media three months after under-16 ban began, study finds

In a study published on Friday, eSafety also found most children aged between 10 and 15 were using social media just as frequently in March as they had before the ban came into force on December 10 last year, while parental awareness ‌of their habits ⁠decreased.

The Independent UK

Australia launches proceedings against Telegram over terrorist content

Australia’s internet commissioner alleges some of the content hosted on platform includes material related to Christchurch and Buffalo attacks as well as Isis beheading

The Independent UK

Australian watchdog files legal action against Telegram, saying it failed to remove violent content

Australia’s online safety watchdog has taken legal action against Telegram for what the watchdog says is a failure to remove extremist content

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AAP

Social App taken to court over terror related content

The Economic Times

Musk's X opposes Australia's tougher teen social media rules

Elon Musk's X platform criticizes Australia's proposed internet regulator powers. Australia's law barring accounts for under-16s faces significant pushback from tech firms. X argues proposed changes undermine U.S. law and international legal principles. The eSafety Commissioner seeks broader powers, facing opposition from platforms and U.S. lawmakers. Parliament is yet to…

The Economic Times

Elon Musk's X says Australia social media ban crackdown undermines international law

Australia's world-first law barring accounts for under-16s took effect last December, drawing criticism from social media companies, mostly based in the United States. In its submission published on Tuesday, X took aim at plans to give the eSafety Commissioner wider rights of document discovery and double the maximum fine to…

The Conversation

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.

TechRadar

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.

The Guardian - AU

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

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

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