Australia pushes Meta to deactivate under-16 accounts
It is August, and a show of hands in an auditorium filled with 300 students at All Saints Anglican School in Australia reveals that few of the 9th- and 10th-graders sitting in the soft red chairs had heard about the upcoming social media ban in the country — let alone how to prepare for it.
“It’s really important to save your photos,” lectures Kirra Pendergast, founder of the cybersecurity organization Ctrl+Shft, speaking from the stage. “You need to be prepared.”
A murmur of alarm spreads through the room as students realize what they are about to lose. “Can you get your account back when you turn 16?” one girl asks. “What if I lie about my age?” another asks, CE Report quotes Kosova Press.
Less than two weeks before the ban, we now have more answers.
Starting from December 10, websites that meet the Australian government’s definition of a “restricted social media platform with age limits” must prove that they are doing enough to exclude or block children under 16 — or face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (32 million USD).
The list includes Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X, and YouTube. The government says it is protecting children from potentially harmful content; the platforms say they are already building safer systems, CNN reports.
Meta says it will begin deactivating accounts and blocking new accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads starting December 4. People under 16 are being encouraged to download their content.
