Australia’s under-16 social media ban failing, study shows: What it means
Australia's internet regulator found that over 80 percent of children under 16 continue using social media despite a ban implemented in December 2024. The study revealed that most young users retained or created new accounts, with social media platforms' failure to enforce age verification cited as the primary reason for non-compliance.
Australia's eSafety regulator has documented widespread non-compliance with the nation's under-16 social media prohibition, revealing that enforcement mechanisms remain largely ineffective three months after the ban's introduction. The study found that more than eight in ten Australian children under 16 maintained active social media accounts despite the legal restriction that took effect on December 10, 2024.
The research identified inadequate age assurance measures as the central factor enabling continued access. Approximately half of the children who retained their accounts reported that platforms had not verified their age. Others circumvented restrictions by maintaining accounts listed as aged 16 or older, or by exploiting flawed age-checking systems that incorrectly classified them as adults. Prior to the ban, 86 percent of surveyed children used at least one age-restricted platform; three months later, that figure remained above 81 percent.
Usage patterns showed minimal change following implementation. Around 58 percent of teenagers reported daily social media use after the ban, compared to roughly 60 percent beforehand. The study also found negligible shifts in children's engagement with sports, physical activity, arts, music, family time, and community events.
Experts had anticipated enforcement challenges from the outset. Digital wellbeing researcher Joanna Orlando warned that tech-savvy adolescents would employ workarounds such as virtual private networks, falsified biometric data for facial recognition systems, or migration to less-regulated platforms outside the ban's scope. Video game platforms remain exempt from the prohibition.
Australia became the first nation globally to implement such a comprehensive age-based social media restriction, motivated by government concerns regarding cyberbullying, sexual exploitation, and self-harm content's effects on youth mental and physical health. A 2023 government-commissioned study found that four of five children aged eight to 16 use social media, typically beginning between ages ten and twelve.
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