Australia moves to ban under-16s from social media platforms

The Australian government announced on October 10, 2024, that it will introduce legislation to Parliament in November prohibiting children under 16 from accessing social media platforms, with no exemptions for parental consent or pre-existing accounts. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated that the law would place the onus on platforms to demonstrate they are taking reasonable steps to prevent access by underage users, with implementation expected 12 months after passage. The proposal represents one of the strictest age-restriction regimes globally, though the government has not yet detailed the age-assurance technology platforms would be required to deploy.

A blanket access ban of this kind restricts compliant young users while leaving unaddressed the conduct that drives harm: grooming, sextortion and abuse migrate to less-regulated messaging channels, direct contact and gaming platforms where visibility is lower and enforcement weaker. Guardii, backed by Startmate and operating as a world-leading AI safety platform, offers an alternative architecture—real-time pattern detection that identifies hostile and coercive contact as it occurs, blocking or flagging it before it reaches the child, whether the interaction takes place on Instagram, Snapchat, Discord or Roblox. Rather than requiring every user to verify their age, targeted detection surfaces the child in crisis to a parent or safeguarding professional and enables rapid escalation to authorities when warranted, addressing the underlying risk without restricting access for those not at threat.