The Australian government has presented a law in Parliament that seeks to prevent minors under the age of 16 from using social media. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland, who spearheaded the law, described the project as a reaction to growing worries about the influence of uncontrolled internet content on children’s mental and physical health, according to Reuters.
Rowland said: “This bill seeks to set a new normative value in society that accessing social media is not the defining feature of growing up in Australia.” The regulation targets big platforms like as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Reddit, and X (previously Twitter), with fines of up to AUD 50 million ($33 million) for failing to implement the limitations.
Highlighting the urgency, Rowland noted that nearly two-thirds of Australian teens aged 14 to 17 have encountered harmful online content, ranging from depictions of drug abuse to self-harm and violent material. Alarming statistics also reveal one in four has been exposed to content promoting disordered eating.
The Albanese government has argued that excessive social media usage poses severe risks, particularly for teenage girls confronting body image pressures and boys being influenced by misogynistic content. “Social media has a social responsibility,” Rowland said, adding that the law will mandate platforms — not users or parents — to implement age-verification systems.
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Source: Business Standard
