Australia plans to set a legal minimum age for children to access social media

As of September 10, 2024, the Australian government has promised to legislate this year to implement a minimum age limit for children to access social media. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that age verification technology will soon be trialed to prohibit children from opening social media accounts, with the age limit set between 14 and 16 years old.

Some countries and several states in the United States are attempting to legislate to protect children from the harms of social media, including issues such as bullying. Australia's move is due to parents' calls to protect their children's online safety. At the same time, the opposition party has also promised that if it wins the election before May next year, it will prohibit children under 16 from using social media. Albanese said that it is necessary to ensure that young people are kept away from social harms, as bullying and inappropriate content on the Internet can affect the mental health of young people. Parents hope there are countermeasures.

However, Lisa Given, an information technology expert at RMIT University, believes that the government's plan will prevent children from accessing useful content and is a very problematic measure that may prevent children from obtaining helpful support on social media. The state of South Australia has also recently proposed a law that will fine social media companies that do not exclude children under 14 from the platform.