Australia Shuts Down 5 Million Teen Accounts on Social Media

In a landmark action, Australia has deactivated nearly five million social media accounts belonging to users under the age of 16, just a month after the implementation of a new law. The eSafety Commission announced that around 4.7 million accounts were removed to adhere to regulations introduced on December 10.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hailed this initiative as “a point of pride for Australia.”

Countries like France, Malaysia, and Indonesia are contemplating similar measures, while various European nations and states in the US are also evaluating their own age restrictions.

Government statistics offer an initial glance into the compliance efforts, indicating that social media companies are proactively enforcing the new regulations. Non-compliance could result in hefty fines of up to A$49.5 million (approximately $33 million), but neither children nor parents can be penalized.

The number of deactivated accounts surpassed earlier estimations, averaging more than two accounts for each Australian aged 10 to 16. Meta alone reported deleting around 550,000 accounts across Instagram, Facebook, and Threads.

This age restriction extends to major platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, and X (formerly Twitter). Reddit is cooperating while also challenging the ban legally. The government has committed to uphold the law.

Though some critics voice concerns about the difficulty of enforcing the ban, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant noted that completely eradicating underage activity is unattainable. She remarked, “We don’t expect safety laws to eliminate every single breach. If we did, speed limits would fail because people speed, and laws on drinking would fail, as some minors still access alcohol.”

All major social media platforms affected by this ban have agreed to comply. Smaller applications noted an increase in downloads leading up to the December rollout, but eSafety reported that this surge did not result in sustained user engagement.

A comprehensive long-term study involving mental health professionals is set to examine the effects of this ban in the coming years.