Australia social media ban: Australia is the first democracy to have introduced such a ban on social media for underage children.
(Representation image)
Australia’s social media ban for children is all set to come into force on Wednesday, December 10. With this, Children under-16 will not be able to use major social media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, X, TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat.
Underage Children will not be able to create new accounts and profiles of those, who are already active on these platforms, will be deactivated.
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Australia is the first democracy to have introduced such a ban on social media for underage children.
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The Australian government argues that the ban would help reduce the negative impact of social media on children.
But it has people divided. While some think the ban will be beneficial, there are others who are of the view that it will make the younger generation less aware of things happening around them.
Why Australian govt is imposing this social media ban
The government had conducted a study to assess the impact of social media on children. The study found out that almost all of children (96 per cent) aged 10-15 used social media.
Seven out of every 10 of these children were exposed to harmful content, including misogynistic and violent material. More than half of them also faced cyberbullying.
The ban, the Australian govt has said, is its response to these rising concerns.
How the social media ban will work
According to the new federal rules announced by the Australian government, social media companies operating in the country will have to introduce age-verification systems to detect minors.
This includes ID checks, regular audits, and compulsory reporting of how they identify users below the age of 16.
Noncompliance will fetch fines up to USD 31.95 million. However, the penalties will be applicable only to the social media companies and not children or their parents.
Which social platforms are banned for children
Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Threads, YouTube, Reddit, Kick and Twitch will not be accessible for children aged below 16.
However, dating apps and online games have been excluded but there are demands to include them as well.
The government has said that it will continue to review the list of banned platforms and there are chances dating apps and online gaming platforms may also be included.
YouTube Kids, Google Classroom and WhatsApp have been excluded from the ban.
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