Meta Starts Blocking Teen Accounts as New Under-16 Restrictions in Australia

Australia has become the first country in the world to enforce a nationwide social-media age cutoff by requiring platforms like Meta to deactivate accounts belonging to users under 16 - and major platforms have already begun cutting off access for affected accounts. The law, coming into effect on 10 December 2025, aims to restrict under-16s from holding or creating accounts on several major apps, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube and others.

From early December, companies such as Meta began acting. On 4 December, Meta notified many teenage users aged 13–15 that their access to Facebook, Instagram and related services would be terminated. Some 500,000 accounts are estimated to be affected just at the start.

Under the new rules enforced by Australia’s internet regulator, the eSafety Commissioner, platforms must “take reasonable steps” to prevent under-16s from using or reopening accounts — or face fines up to A$49.5 million.

The commissioner, initially skeptical of the ban’s “blunt-force” nature, said she came to support it after concluding that previous, more modest regulations — such as limiting features or parental-control tools — failed to protect children from harmful social-media practices. She described design elements used by social-media companies as deeply manipulative, especially toward minors.

Critics and some parents are already reacting. While some welcome the ban as a boost for youth mental health and safety, others warn that teenagers may simply migrate to smaller, less-regulated apps — possibly undermining the law’s protective intent.

Regardless, the Australian move is seen internationally as a potential tipping point: regulators and governments worldwide are watching closely, some already signalling similar proposals may follow elsewhere. With Australia becoming the first country to impose such a sweeping age-based ban, the global conversation about children’s digital safety has entered a new phase

Read More : https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australia-says-world-will-follow-social-media-ban-meta-starts-blocking-teens-2025-12-04/?utm_source=

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