AUSTRALIA TO IMPLEMENT SOCIAL MEDIA BAN, TRIGGERING INTERNATIONAL CRACKDOWN. (PHOTO).

 Australia to implement social media ban, triggering international crackdown

Australia is set to become the first country to enforce a minimum age for social media use starting Wednesday, requiring platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to block more than a million accounts. The move is seen as the start of a potential global trend in social media regulation.

From midnight local time, 10 major platforms must prevent users under 16 from accessing their services or face fines of up to A$49.5 million ($33 million). While parents and child advocacy groups have welcomed the law, tech companies and free speech advocates have criticized it as overly restrictive. The rollout concludes a year of debate over whether governments can intervene in the use of technology by children, and will serve as a global case study for lawmakers frustrated by what they see as insufficient voluntary safety measures by the tech industry.

Countries including Denmark and Malaysia, along with some U.S. states, have signaled plans for similar restrictions. The push follows revelations from internal Meta documents showing the company was aware its platforms contributed to body image issues and suicidal thoughts among teens, even as it publicly denied such effects. Experts suggest Australia’s approach may inspire similar measures elsewhere, with the British government closely monitoring the policy.

The ban initially affects 10 platforms, including YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, though the government intends to expand the list as new apps emerge and young users migrate to alternative platforms. Most companies plan to comply by using age inference tools, age estimation from selfies, or verification through ID or linked bank accounts. Elon Musk has criticized the ban, calling it a potential “backdoor way to control access to the internet,” and legal challenges in Australia are pending.

For social media businesses, the restrictions mark a shift as user growth stalls and engagement declines. Platforms argue they earn little from advertising to under-16s but see the ban as disrupting a pipeline of future users; government data shows 86% of Australians aged 8 to 15 currently use social media. Experts say the era of social media as a space for unregulated self-expression may be coming to an end, with stricter regulations and protections for young users likely to reshape the industry.