Australia Senate votes to ban children under 16 from social media | Mashable.
World’s strictest social media law targets users under 16 in Australia
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| Australia votes to ban children under 16 from social media Credit: Photo by Nikolas Kokovlis/NurPhoto via Getty Images |
In a long-anticipated Senate vote, Australian is banning children under 16 years old from using social media. It is the world's strictest law protecting young people from the effects of social media.
"Social media is doing harm to our kids and I'm calling time on it," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra earlier this month. "I've spoken to thousands of parents, grandparents, aunties and uncles. They, like me, are worried sick about the safety of our kids online."
SEE ALSO:Australia to ban social media for kids under 16
Social media companies already don't allow children under the age of 13 to use their platforms, but that rule is often easily skirted by savvy young people who want to use the platform anyway. This ban, which passed the Senate by 34 votes to 19 votes on Thursday, will take effect in a year. It puts the onus on social media companies — instead of parents or kids themselves — to ban the use. Tech companies could be fined up to 50 million AUD, or $32.5 million, if they don't comply, according to the BBC.
The ruling is supported by many, many surveys and studies that detail the dangers social media can have on young people that ties social media use to mental health struggles. It's not clear which specific social media platforms will be effected, but Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said earlier this month that it will likely include at least Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X, and YouTube. While this law is specific to Australia, it could have international implications as other countries continue to fight over how to handle young people online.
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How are they going to enforce this?
ReplyDeleteim curious what will constitute a "Social media" website or app
DeleteAlgorithm-driven media feeds are the big concern.
DeleteSo, search engines?
DeleteHave only read briefly about it but this sounds like a nightmare for everyone lol
Good luck enforcing it. Kids can be extremely crafty and sneaky.
ReplyDeleteIf only the parents would, I dunno, parent them. Crazy, I know.
DeleteOur government likes to think they do a better job. Like the vape ban and nicotine taxes. Now we have a thriving black market where you can get any nicotine product 1/4 the price.
DeleteGood luck forbidding the internet from your child.
DeleteAlso good luck teaching them to be above the algorithm when most adults fail at that.
I'm sure parental controls on phones can blacklist certain websites and apps.
DeleteAustralians... They once waged war on the Emus. But now they wage war on Skibidi.
ReplyDeleteHello from New Zealand. At least, that's what my VPN will indicate.
ReplyDeleteThese apps are damn near spyware. They can detect information from your sim card. Depending how much they want to comply (if they don't care about getting fined), VPNs won't help.
DeleteWhy tho ? I see no problem on a social media ban for kids & teens
DeleteMy guess is this person with use nz VPN so they can avoid social media
DeleteWill you have a problem with the ban if it requires YOU to somehow verify that you arent a kid or teen online?
DeleteThe bill doesnt state how social media companies are to enforce the law, and the government has deliberately said that the way they do so is up to them.
For the sake of argument, are you ok with uploading a video of yourself to facebook/ reddit/ whatsapp/ whatever to say "my name is iMars873, I hereby verify that I am over 16, and this account belongs to me" (which is a form of identification that some websites choose to use right now)? Do you want these companies to be able to link you to and hold you responsible for every single interaction that you have on their platform? Have you ever said anything mean on this site, used it to voice a non-mainstream or controversial opinion, or searched for answers to legally or morally questionable content? Are you at all concerned that a data breach on a social media platform could potentially put everything that you have ever said in the hands of scammers, who could use it to either exploit you or extort you by threatening to leak your opinions, photos, content, etc to your friends, family or employer (or say, chuck a bunch of child porn on your account and threaten to fuck your life up)?
Thats why people are outraged.
Isn't this like banning kids from reading books after Gutenberg invented the printing press?
ReplyDeleteThere are good books and bad books and we need to teach kids how to tell the difference. There is good social media and bad social media and we need to teach kids how to tell the difference.
Social media is the primary means of communication in the world now. Banning kids from using it is a failure to prepare them for the future they are going to live in.
It’s really not. It would be like banning them from a specific type of book. Besides, scrolling tiktok, instagram, etc. is not as beneficial as reading. Social media is designed to be addictive regardless of age, and has been proven to be terrible for mental health of youth and adolescents. I don’t know that this bill is the solution but social media is harming kids around the world. Change is needed.
DeleteThere is no social media that's good for children. This is like banning pornography for under 18's since the printing press was recently invented. Not at all comparable to books.
Delete"This is like banning pornography for under 18's"
DeleteIncredibly ineffective?
Sure worked well in the age of print.
DeleteNot at all? You’re saying you’ve never gone to reddit to solve an issue you’re having?
DeleteNeed the over 60s as well.
ReplyDeleteI think this is an extreme, but necessary, piece of legislation. The only thing I'd want to also see is for the government to do more to prevent parents from absolutely plastering their kids lives online. By the time these kids can make any decisions of their own, a dozen conglomerates will have enough photo data and AI training to target them to a T. We need to bring back some semblance of privacy and anonymity to the world.
ReplyDeleteI think we should also start teaching kids about internet safety again.
DeleteNever post your picture online. Never post identifying information online. Otherwise a psychopath will find you.
Nowadays? If you don't do that, everyone assumes YOU'RE a psychopath.
Since IDs or any other verifiable means of age check are not enforceable, should the headline actually be “Australian Kids to be forced to lie about their age on social media”?
ReplyDeleteKids can win at home over parental control. Government control would be an easier target.
ReplyDeleteIt's about mass. If you're not forced to be on something because you're not the only one outside it, you won't care as much.
DeleteMost kids are explorer by nature.
DeleteThey explore what they care about, they care about socials because there's stuff targeted to them and most of their peers talk about it. If suddenly half your peer are talking about something different you may just choose their topic instead (kids are even more likely to be locked into acceptance-focused dynamics than to randomly explore something... Most of what happens before mid high-school can be summarised into "trying to find someone to bully" and usually it's the one who likes to explore)
DeleteKids is just the headline, they want adults to verify their IDs is the real issue, no more internet anonymity.
DeleteOtherwise it would be a simple porn “are you 18?” Button
This is the trend. We're just a bit behind communist China.
DeleteWhy are kids not being monitored online that a ban is necessary?
ReplyDeleteIt is negligent for parents to allow their children unfettered access to socmed anyway. It’s like giving easy access to cigarettes, pornography and alcohol around the house.
This is a parent problem not a government problem.
All three of those things have laws which require the people selling it to verify if you're over 18 so that is a comically ironic comparison to make.
Deletethose things typically aren’t readily available in the house?
DeleteKids aren’t asking an older person outside the convenience store to buy them some digital crack.
Honestly I wish they would pull the plug. Turns out society is not very social when they are not in physical presence of each other.
ReplyDeleteTrue actually, for all the wonder that the internet once was, right now it is full of brainrot material.
DeleteGovernment should not be involved in this. Social media has its downsides, but is undeniably THE place to build communities with other people like you. Beyond the issues of the government tampering with things like this, social media is beyond important for building connections, and marginalized people are going to struggle with this after the ban takes place. Interestingly enough, this ban doesn’t even apply to actually dangerous websites, like 4chan, and any other anonymous posting sites. Those are all a-ok. This ban will just rip apart communities, and lead people to seek more dangerous social media sites. This law also had thousands of revisions suggested, and only some were reviewed. Pretty shit.
ReplyDeleteInsane how people are down for the government telling them what they can do. It’s up to parents to let their kids use social media. Not the government. Australia sucks
DeleteIf this was years ago I’d say this is backwards logic and not at all helpful.
ReplyDeleteNow a days? My god let everyone be banned from social media. A blight on society.
For what its worth, all my mates who are parents are in favour of this legislation. I'm curious to see how its implemented effectively
ReplyDeleteI’d be curious to know how many of them would be in favor of this legislation with the knowledge that it’s the first step towards the end of anonymity on the internet.
DeleteIf you think you have anonymity on the internet from government, you're an idiot.
DeleteSo many people act as bullies or conplete a**holes online, so wouldn't that be good in a way?
DeleteIf you act like an idiot in real life, people in a lot of cases will know who you are. Shouldn't it be the same online? Maybe it'll decrease the amount of trolls, toxic people, etc, doing more harm than good.
I do get the issue of ID security if they're required to be uploaded as nearly all online social platforms have been hacked at some point.
I think there are benefits for lack of anonymity on the internet in terms of people who are doing the wrong thing, and potentially disincentivizing such behavior.
DeleteThe problem is who decides what the “wrong thing” is? It can start out in good faith trying to prevent bullying, or cyber crime, but what’s stopping a government from deciding that people who speak out against them are doing the “wrong thing?” And you could argue that is an extreme example and not likely to happen, but there are governments in power today who would kill for the ability to easily identify dissidents online and take them out.
There’s a trade-off with policies like these. They depend heavily on the people who make them and enforce them to do so in good faith. Humans have proven time and again that is something not to be taken for granted.
The idea is great. Kids shouldn’t be able to access the raw unfiltered dumb that is the internet. They should be able to explore curated segments, with parental guidance, but they absolutely shouldn’t have free run of everything. Problem is there is no realistic way to enforce a law like this while preserving adult autonomy.
Deletemy guess is Algorithms will probably pick up if people are posting stuff that looks kid-ish like the ones that pick up copyright or porn, then I'm guessing the account will be deactivated until they verify their age. either with ID and/or scanning the face. will there be pushback? definitely, will it work? maybe
DeleteSome say "banned from social media"
ReplyDeleteOthers say "protected from social media"
Good luck trying to enforce this lmao.
ReplyDeleteAustralian politicians know VPNs exist right?
i dont see how this would be remotely enforceable. ive definitely managed to get past supposed blocks like this before fairly easily.
ReplyDeleteCorporations just need to take reasonable precautions, so a popup where you enter your birthday or something that doesn't do anything.
DeleteGive it about 6 months before you read about how this didn't work.
ReplyDeleteWouldn't be the first time the government brought some dumb rule like this that doesn't work
Ultimately a bad day for freedom of speech. Basically the government wants to use force to control teens media diets, ensuring there is little room for opinions or even facts outside of what government regulated channels like to provide. A bit of a reach but by targeting teens specifically they are also ensuring future adults will think and vote along established lines.
ReplyDeleteIt's yet another 3rd place that they're banned from without a parent. And we wonder why the kids are the way they are.
DeleteWhy do I feel like after an extended period of protestations, Australia is about to have the most well adjusted children this side of an undiscovered tribe?
ReplyDeleteYeah Imo I see this as a positive. It's nothing to do with freedom or censorship. No one has any idea of the long term impact of social media. It's toxic, creates a desire for instant gratification, creates unrealistic standards, platform for bullying, platform to be exposed to hatred, sexual content, abuse, manipulative marketing by companies and so much more.
DeleteIt's shocking how many people actually believe social media is a positive environment for children. Social media and corporations that have failed to provide a safe platform has caused this to happen. Not governments.
When I was a kid, adults used to tell us “TV will rot your brains”. Now adults can’t shove a smartphone in their kid’s eagerly waiting hands fast enough, so they can get back to theirs.
DeletePorn sites: Are you 18 or over? Yes to proceed, No to back out
ReplyDeleteMe when I was 12 years old: Yea sure, I'm 69 years old hehehe
How the fuck does this get enforced? Seems dumb. There's always a way around these laws
It's like a modern day Footloose. Just less interesting.
ReplyDeleteInsta and TikTok do more damage than dancing
DeleteYeah, and violent video games! And movies! And all the swearing in that gosh darn hip hop!
DeleteSame old story
I don’t like government having to enforce laws like these. But there are so many researchers already showing that the arrival of smart phones and social media and the decline of mental health in teens/kids and the rise of suicide attempts.
ReplyDeleteSomething needs to be done to address this, is this the correct move, I don’t know, but the truth is social media is too new still and we don’t really know how to regulate or stop the bad effects it has on people.
It’s clear parents alone can’t do it. So society needs to get involved as well. It will be interesting to see the results of this law 10 years from now
I remember the outrage when China did something similar.
ReplyDeleteThat was about limiting gaming time, and the people who were outraged at that probably are not the same people cheering this on.
Delete
ReplyDeleteI said it before, and I'll say it again: banning social media for anyone is anti human rights.
"Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."
Article 19, Universal Declaration of Human Rights
They didn't say phone ban, only social media ban
ReplyDeletePhones are banned in classrooms already.
DeleteBut how else will the other 13 year olds know that Melon is a cool guy?
ReplyDeleteAustralia is a disaster. The Covid Policing made that very clear. I used to want to visit Australia. It was a Dream over the last 50 years. Nowwww.... hell no, Id rather visit a third world country first.
ReplyDeleteNo clue how they can enforce that but good on them for at least trying.
ReplyDeleteCongratulaltions for putting the health of youngsters before anything else...............Period
ReplyDeleteGod you're all so stupid.
ReplyDeleteThey don't give a shit about children. They want our data. They want to end anonymous browsing.
hopefully this will decrease child exploitation in social media in AUS. tired of these parents posting their children online against their will
ReplyDeleteKinda interesting that this is going ahead after cannabis legalisation just failed.
ReplyDeleteThis legislation is way more popular than cannabis legislation.
Delete
ReplyDeleteAustralia is very vague on this rule. As things stand, not only is it restricting platforms like Facebook and X but also any platform that has a chat function. This means outlets like Youtube and news websites are unavailable for usage and also most education websites as it relies on insights and questions placed in a chat function that can essentially be abused.
Mainly, the Australian government is not allowing kids under 16 to use 80% of the internet.
oh are they banning usenet?
Deletekids won't let this so them. they'll either find a new service or use their vastly superior technological intellect to bypass whatever walls the adults put up.
But how will adults know how skibidi something is?
ReplyDeleteidk about the law itself, but banning social media from kids is a good idea overall, it does more bad than good for them
ReplyDeleteI don't know, as an 80s kid I was one of the last to grow up without the internet, and seeing as how it's impacted my nieces and nephews... I say good. I want more of this. Kids younger than 18 shouldn't be using social media.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteFor those wondering
This ban on kids and teens is a test run
If this fails entirely, Australia will and will completely ban these social networks completely in Australia
Meaning even if you have it installed on your phone, you will no longer be able to open it, along with downloading it
I can 100% confirm this will fail and will eventually result in a complete permanent ban of these apps in Australia
What to do? Quit while you are ahead, download all of your videos and photos from facebook etc, learn to communicate to your friends and family via phone call or messages
I agree with the spirit of the law but enforcement will either be ineffective or draconian. No inbetween
ReplyDeleteHow can adults monitor their kids when Dads gambling on the footy with his 6 pack and $70 pack of Blues and Mums Top 3% of OF doing a 70% $3.95 monthly sale push to make rent as it’s gone up 8 times in the last 6 weeks. Come people. Buy less bitcoin and grow up.
ReplyDeleteThis seems like the reading rage issue in the late 1700s-1800s. Social media is here to stay, the same as books were. Banning is a tired idea.
ReplyDeleteThat just leaves a massive gate for brainwashing opened.
ReplyDeleteMexico did it too. Every kid is on social media .
ReplyDeleteIf my provider starts asking for my driver ID.
ReplyDeleteMmmmmmmm…….
What happened to PARENTING ???
ReplyDeleteMost people are too focused on how it'd be enforced and lost the plot - a big reason is for parents to be informed or at least question why their teens aren't allowed to be on social media anymore, and that's a big step.
ReplyDeleteBecause it’s a waste of time that could have been spent doing something productive. Instead it’s political theater
DeleteIts a shame how Labor has had a tonne of good policies going through but then they cancel it out with something stupid like the voice or this information bill, maybe its a 9 head play to get media attention on these shitty bills so the media don't notice any decent bills that are actually good for the public considering the media like painting anything good for the public in a negative light
ReplyDeleteI don’t know how they could enforce such a law without forcing ID verification, both for minors and adults. Seems like a massive violation of privacy.
ReplyDeleteSocial media needs stricter global regulation to protect impressionable young minds from manipulation.
ReplyDeleteI'm kinda getting tired of all these "world-first laws" in Australia.
ReplyDeleteAustralia still operating like a prison
ReplyDeleteWon't do shit. Australia also passed a law that ISP's have to block torrent websites. Simply VPN and you're around it obviously. Stopped nobody
ReplyDeletewhen my parents installed tracking software on my phone I learned how to boot in factory mode with selected apps. I guarantee this law won't have any effect
ReplyDeleteExcept your parents weren’t gonna get smacked with million dollar fines for this.
DeleteAnd is this going to solve what exactly?
ReplyDeleteLooking like they’re doing something?
DeleteYeah, good point.
Deletethose kids will appreciate this in the future
ReplyDeleteHow are they going to enforce this? Kids are just going to put their age as 18+
ReplyDeleteMaybe something like SK has. Browser plugin that verifies your identity. Digital certificates, something like that.
DeletePhones exist and don't have plugins. I don't know a single person that uses a computer for social media. It's mostly on phones and kids have phones.
DeleteIt seems a bit over the top, a bit harsh, a bit draconian even..... I bet the results are positive from it though.
ReplyDeleteUntil people are required to sign up with government issued ID, this changes nothing.
ReplyDeleteTime to invest in Australian companies in 10 years. Good job.
ReplyDeleteI was watching my 9 year old play a game and was SHOCKED by how many ads they have to endure. Granted they are the "free" version so the advertising is going to be there but it was about 30% of her time was waiting for the ads to end.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, kids used to watch TV shows all day that had that exact same ad distribution.
DeleteCan I also be banned? And everyone I know? Especially family?
ReplyDeleteSocial media is bad for kids. This law…is also bad.
ReplyDeleteI want this in the US.
ReplyDeleteCan America do it next?? Half of us here are morons and democracy cannot take much more of it.
ReplyDeleteAnd direct the populace toward Fox News and cnn? Hardly preferable.
Delete- Control the media (or who has access to it)
ReplyDelete- dumb down and separate (kids can't drive obvs) from friends
- Make a less educated next-gen
Worked in Germany in the 40's and in the US rn. Wouldn't be shocking if AUS was next.
This is a good law, but the only way to enforce it is forcing all accounts to include an ID, which will inevitably cause a bot and troll-revolt
ReplyDeleteDo ten year olds even carry ID in Australia?
DeleteThat would be the point. If you can’t be verified you can’t have an account.
DeleteHello Tik Tok, my name is McLovin, I am a 25 year old man.
DeleteIn other completely unrelated news Australia has seen a surge of INSERT_MIN_AGE_TO_USE_SOCIAL_MEDIA profiles created recently. Social media sites welcome these new young users as they were worried the loss of kid users might hurt income.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a quick way to take money from social media giants for something they aren't given the ability to control. No IDing and no repercussions for people means this won't work.
ReplyDeleteThis just in: australian kids the new IT specialist superrace.
ReplyDeleteIn other news: vpn sales skyrocket.
What a waste of time. Yes let’s make laws to stunt the social growth of teenagers. Oh wait, it actually doesn’t even do anything because everyone will just lie when the “are you 16” box pops up
ReplyDeleteMore empty contributions from “hard” working politicians
That’s so unnecessary and totally not a priority given the other problems they have
ReplyDeleteOnly way this would work if your issued a digital ID at birth or you need everyone to have a GovID that the social networks can validate your age
ReplyDeleteDon't worry!
ReplyDeleteI expect all of social media corporations to start sponsoring learning institutions of all grades, and providing basic equipment and materials, from desks and buildings, to state-of-the-art technology, and computers.
Some kind of propaganda will be displayed and linked to television screens showing "today's product and/or service", with teachers having to be certified the same way franchises lease their trademarks and logos to business owners, with "rigorous reviews" and "top standards".
You know... for the children.
Women in black bags is the next step? They make you feel sexual feelings and suffer. Stop sexualizing women! Ban woman body! Though they'd have to go through a few "harmful" video games, movies and then books.
ReplyDeleteFunny how the entire reddit is basically ok with a bunch of crooks telling people what they can or can't watch or read.
I hope PictoChat isn't included, I just got my DS.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with that. This will not go well for whoever thought this will work.
ReplyDeletegood luck with this... my parents don't even know what a firewall is let alone a VPN, tinfoil on a Milo tin!
ReplyDeleteFuck china government evil policy
ReplyDeleteThey should add 4chan to the list of social media, otherwise kids will just go there and get exposed to all their stuff.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with the ban in general, but they can at least try to do SOME good.