Australia plans 'world-leading' ban on social media for children under 16
The Australian government will legislate for a ban on social media for children under 16, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday, in what it calls a world-leading package of measures that could become law late next year.
Australia is trialing an age-verification system to assist in blocking children from accessing social media platforms, as part of a range of measures that include some of the toughest controls imposed by any country to date.
"Social media is doing harm to our kids and I'm calling time on it," Albanese told a news conference.
Albanese cited the risks to the physical and mental health of children from excessive social media use, in particular the risks to girls from harmful depictions of body image, and misogynist content aimed at boys.
"If you're a 14-year-old kid getting this stuff, at a time where you're going through life's changes and maturing, it can be a really difficult time and what we're doing is listening and then acting," he said.
A number of countries have already vowed to curb social media use by children through legislation, though Australia's policy is one of the most stringent.
Legislation will be introduced into the Australian parliament this year, with the laws coming into effect 12 months after being ratified by lawmakers, Albanese said.
There will be no exemptions for children who have parental consent, or who already have accounts.
According to the officials, platforms impacted would include Meta Platforms' Instagram and Facebook, as well as Bytedance's TikTok and Elon Musk's X. Alphabet's YouTube would likely also fall within the scope of the legislation.
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