Australia's social media ban for kids a global test case, even as it faces challenges | 60 Minutes
In a Nutshell
Australia is the first country to ban social media accounts for children under 16, with early data showing a 20% drop in accounts held by 10-15 year olds. Implementation is patchy—platforms have failed to properly verify ages, and some teens easily bypass restrictions by lying about birthdates or using AI age checks. While parents and officials cite mental health harms, bullying, and exploitation as justification, the law faces a High Court challenge over free speech concerns and is being closely watched as a global test case.
These notes were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Roughly two-thirds of people on the planet use social media, and many cannot stop scrolling. The dangers for children are well documented, including mental health problems, bullying, and sexual predators. In the US, social media companies have settled lawsuits totaling billions without admitting any wrongdoing. Australia became the first country in the world to force many social media platforms to prevent children under the age of 16 from having accounts.
Oscar Groves, just shy of his 16th birthday, attempted to open a Snapchat account but received the message: "We're sorry to share that new local laws have placed restrictions on users under 16 accessing Snapchat." When attempting to open a TikTok account, the platform immediately stated he was not eligible. Social media companies are required to check the age of all users or may face hefty penalties.
Social media has transformed the lives of young people in terms of communication, information exposure, and their entire experience of childhood. A US surgeon general advisory reported that more than 3 hours of social media use a day can double the risk of mental health issues like depression and anxiety in children. In the US, tech executives have been brought before Congress to face families whose young relatives were exploited, abused, or killed through social media use. At a 2024 hearing, Mark Zuckerberg apologized to families of victims.
Peter Malinowski, Premier of South Australia (equivalent to a state governor in the US), announced a plan to ban children from using social media in his state of under two million people. His wife Annabelle West urged him to take action after hearing stories from other parents about early teenagers gaining phone access and entering a downward spiral of social media use.
Malinowski stated that the vast majority of Australian parents supported the initiative. When he announced that his state would legislate, the Australian national government quickly followed suit with bipartisan support.
Malinowski explained that kids would find ways around the ban, similar to a 16-year-old sneaking behind a shed to have a cigarette or beer, but they would do it less frequently with a community standard in place. He characterized social media as the ultimate form of social engineering, dictating who sees what when in an unregulated, unchecked manner driven by profit motive. He argued that when corporate operators engage in social engineering, government has a role to play to stop it.
Malinowski noted that asking a 14-year-old to give up social media once platforms have become central to their communication is almost impossible, so the objective was to intervene early before the damage sets in. In the first 3 months of the ban, the number of 10 to 15 year olds holding at least one account on age-restricted social media fell by around 20% according to research from Australia's online safety watchdog.
At St. Ignatius school in South Australia, teachers reported that the ban has freed at least some children to have healthier childhoods. The principal emphasized teaching young people to master technology rather than be mastered by it, focusing on ethical, safe, and responsible use.
Wayne Holdsworth visited over 100 Australian schools to discuss social media hazards. In 2022, his teenage son Mac was sent a nude photo on social media by someone he believed was an 18-year-old woman. When Mac responded with an intimate photo, he discovered he was communicating with a criminal in his 40s who blackmailed him, threatening to share the photo publicly. The criminal followed through, sending the photo to Mac's friends and family. Mac was crushed by shame. At 5 minutes to 7 on October 24, 2023, Holdsworth discovered his son had taken his life.
Holdsworth stated: "We elect the government to ensure that we're safe and that includes children. And they have not been safe because there's been organizations that have come into Australia that have damaged them. And finally, Australia, the first country in the world, introduced legislation to prevent those tech giants damaging our children."
Three months after the social media ban came into effect, 50% of children under 16 who still held accounts said they hadn't even been asked to confirm their age. Australia's independent e-safety commissioner Julie Inman Grant stated she hadn't seen the compliance she would have hoped for from social media platforms, despite knowing they have the technology to implement age verification.
Inman Grant's office is investigating several social media platforms for potential non-compliance, with potential penalties of around $70 million each. She noted that reputation concerns may motivate companies more than fines, as they don't want to be seen as deliberately hurting kids.
Noah Jones, who was 15 when the ban went into force, reported that one social media platform scanned his face with AI and determined he was old enough to keep his account. Other platforms made circumvention even easier - he created a new account using the same name but changed his birthday to 2 years earlier.
Jones has become the public face of opposition to the law and is a witness in a legal challenge in Australia's High Court, arguing the ban violates the right to political communication. He stated: "It's just unfair. Like I understand drinking laws, consent, all stuff like that, but why should we be blocked from information?" He argued that social media is now "the one town square" where information is passed around, and banning access would put young people at a disadvantage.
The UK's law should take effect next year, while Norway, Spain, and Canada are working on similar legislation. Inman Grant claims some social media platforms may not be fully enforcing Australia's law because they want to prevent it from succeeding. She stated they were lobbying capitals worldwide to say the law would never work and spent more time trying to convince other governments not to follow suit than implementing the technologies properly.
Meta stated it is complying with Australian law but claims blanket social media bans are ineffective because they push teens to unregulated corners of the internet. The company says it is working to protect child safety with built-in measures. Snap stated it is taking the Australian law seriously and rejects claims that its product is designed to addict children or places profit over safety. TikTok stated its platform is built with safety at its core.
Malinowski stated that tech companies have no excuse for not implementing the law, noting: "These companies have demonstrated that they are some of the most innovative, clever, well-resourced companies in human history. If they know what breakfast cereal I'm eating, if they know what my regular run in the morning looks like, I'm pretty sure they can work out who's 13 and who's 16 pretty easily."
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