Social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok will be required by Australian law to delete members who are younger than 16 or risk severe fines. Just weeks before Canberra enacts broad legislation prohibiting under-16s from using social media, Snapchat has started requesting teenage Australians to confirm their ages, according to a business representative on Monday. Australia will enforce the removal of users under the age of 16 from social media sites including Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok starting on December 10 in order to avoid severe fines. “Starting this week, many users will be asked to verify their age to continue accessing Snapchat,” the business stated.
Users will be able to accomplish this by snapping a picture of their face, which a third party will use to estimate their age range, or by using an Australian bank account or government-issued identification. Users under the age of sixteen will have their accounts locked starting on December 10. Like other social media sites, Snapchat has recommended teen users to save their data as soon as possible because it might be difficult to do so once the ban begins. The messaging service stated that although it “will comply, as we do with all local laws in countries in which we operate,” it strongly disagreed with being included in the government’s ban.
“However, disconnecting teens from their friends and family doesn’t make them safer — it may push them to less safe, less private messaging apps,” it stated. Ten platforms, including Discord, WhatsApp, Lego Play, and Pinterest, have so far escaped inclusion in the historic law. However, the list of prohibited platforms may be updated as needed by Australian authorities. As regulators throughout the world struggle with the risks of social media, there is intense curiosity in whether Australia’s broad limits can be effective. A similar plan to limit children’s usage of social media will be introduced by Christopher Luxon, the prime minister of New Zealand.
Additionally, the Dutch government recommended last year that parents prohibit their children under the age of 15 from using social media platforms like Snapchat and TikTok. The prohibition appears to be among the harshest in the world. However, some experts worry that because online age verification is so difficult to establish and enforce, the rule would only be symbolic.
