Jamaine Punzalan

Article (news)

Australia's social media ban  

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17823520407141782352036124.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left"></span></span></span></div><p>A teenager holds a mobile phone displaying a message from social media platform Instagram after the account was locked for age verification in Sydney on December 9, 2025. AFP photo</p><div> </div><div><br/></div><div><br/></div><p><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/12/9/australia-bans-under-16s-from-social-media-in-world-first-crackdown-2233">Australia&#x27;s social media ban for under 16s </a>has had little impact on teenagers&#x27; scrolling habits, researchers said Thursday in one of the first evaluations of the world-leading measures.</p><p>Australia in December banned under 16s from the likes of Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, in a crackdown designed to protect children from online bullying and &quot;predatory algorithms&quot;.</p><p>But there is little evidence to suggest teenagers have turned away from social media as a consequence, a team of Australia-based researchers found in a peer-reviewed study published by the British Medical Journal.</p><p>Underage users have been dodging the restrictions by using accounts registered to older people, setting up fake accounts, or by logging into private browsers.</p><p>&quot;We found insufficient evidence to conclude that exposure to the Act had any early substantial effects on social media use among adolescents aged under 16,&quot; the researchers wrote.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/12/4/meta-starts-removing-under-16s-from-social-media-in-australia-1039?fbclid=IwY2xjawOkbv9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFKZHhXSUpFZk4yVnl2UERlc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHqN2H14Dj-GWP45nv8nrbXQk8a6cAIaFfAQBKQtqa6thUCvEQtZeeExt0iU9_aem_9A_FvNWy2JiwmRlzAXN1Yg">Meta starts removing under-16s from social media in Australia </a></div><p>There is strong global interest in whether Australia&#x27;s laws could provide a blueprint for how to rein in increasingly powerful tech giants.</p><p>A growing mass of nations have either introduced or are mulling similar bans -- including the United Kingdom, Indonesia, the UAE and New Zealand.</p><p>The researchers surveyed more than 400 young social media users immediately before the restrictions came into effect, and again three months after.</p><p>There was little change for users aged 12-13, a slight decrease for the 14-15 age group, and an increase in use for those aged 16 and older.</p><p>&quot;The findings suggest that the period immediately after the introduction of the act was characterized by limited implementation, incomplete compliance, and substantial circumvention of social media restrictions.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/12/8/-we-were-born-with-it-teens-worldwide-react-to-australia-social-media-ban-1419">&#x27;We were born with it&#x27;: Teens worldwide react to Australia social media ban </a></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Man2v63qiDU?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>NOT &#x27;IMPOSSIBLE&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Tech companies face fines of up to Aus$49.5 million ($34 million) if they fail to show meaningful efforts to weed out underage users.</p><p>Australia in March accused Facebook, TikTok and YouTube of failing to meet their obligations.</p><p>&quot;Australia&#x27;s world-leading social media laws are not failing. But big tech is failing to obey the laws,&quot; Communications Minister Anika Wells said at the time.</p><p>&quot;None of this is impossible. None of this is even difficult for big tech, who are innovative billion-dollar companies.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/12/3/youtube-says-kids-to-be-less-safe-under-australia-s-social-media-ban-0723">YouTube says kids to be &#x27;less safe&#x27; under Australia&#x27;s social media ban </a></div><p>The nation&#x27;s eSafety Commission separately flagged &quot;significant concerns&quot; about Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube.</p><p>A growing body of research suggests too much time online is taking a toll on teen well-being, and Australia&#x27;s ban has been hailed as a godsend for parents sick of seeing children glued to their phones.</p><p>Although platforms have pledged to abide by the laws, they have warned the measures could instead push teenagers into dark, unregulated corners of the internet.</p><p>Social media companies bear the sole responsibility for checking that Australia-based users are 16 or older, and must prove they have taken &quot;reasonable steps&quot; to weed out young teenagers.</p><p>Some platforms are using AI tools to estimate ages based on photos, while users can also choose to prove their age by uploading a government ID.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/3/31/-we-re-kidding-ourselves-tech-ceo-warns-vs-ph-social-media-ban-for-minors-1217">&#x27;We’re kidding ourselves&#x27;: Tech CEO warns vs PH social media ban for minors </a><br/><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2026/6/24/cicc-gorebox-ban-to-stay-until-developer-adds-safeguards-1906">CICC: GoreBox ban to stay until developer adds safeguards </a><br/><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2026/6/24/do-video-games-cause-violence-tacloban-shooting-triggers-debate-1743">Do video games cause violence? Tacloban shooting triggers debate </a></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eiT5bjQo-wM?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6CGA3kiTS8M?&amp;pp=0gcJCT8LAYcqIYzv&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Australia's social media ban for under 16s has had little impact on teenagers' scrolling habits, researchers said Thursday in one of the first evaluations of the world-leading measures.</p>

Australia's social media ban for under 16s has had little impact on teenagers' scrolling habits, researchers said Thursday in one of the first evaluations of the world-leading measures.

Australia teen social media ban has little impact: research

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Australia teen social media ban has little impact: research

Agence France-Presse

Published June 25, 2026 09:46 AM PHT

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Updated June 25, 2026 09:47 AM PHT

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