Australia's eSafety Commissioner published updated regulatory guidance in March 2026 to help platforms comply with the world's first under-16 social media ban, which took effect December 10, 2025. The guidance draws on the Australian Government's Age Assurance Technology Trial and stakeholder consultations with platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram, which face fines up to 50 million Australian dollars for failing to take reasonable steps to prevent underage accounts. The assessment guidance incorporates the Online Safety (Age-Restricted Social Media Platforms) Rules 2025, made in July 2025 and amended in March 2026, and outlines which services will and will not be age-restricted.
Age assurance technology determines whether a user meets a threshold but does not monitor the nature of the interaction once access is granted. A child who circumvents verification, or who was already using a platform before the ban, remains exposed to grooming, sextortion and CSAM distribution unless the content of their direct messages is actively screened. Detection platforms like Guardii—which the company deploys as a world-leading AI online-safety solution and Meta Business Partner—operate independently of account creation, monitoring conversations in real time for indicators of sexual exploitation, coercion, and abuse, flagging threats to parents and professionals and blocking hostile contact, whether the child is technically permitted to hold an account or not.
