Children across Australia woke up on Wednesday with no access to their social media accounts under a world-first ban designed to shelter those under 16 from addictive algorithms, online predators, and digital bullies.
No other nation has taken such sweeping measures, and the rollout of the tough new law is being closely watched by legislators around the globe.
The 10 banned platforms – Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Snapchat, YouTube, TikTok, Kick, Reddit, Twitch and X – say they’ll comply with the ban, using age verification technology to identify under-16s and suspend their accounts, but they don’t believe it’ll make children safer.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was a “proud day” for Australia.
“This is the day when Australian families are taking back power from these big tech companies. They are asserting the right of kids to be kids and for parents to have greater peace of mind,” Albanese told the public broadcaster ABC Wednesday. But he conceded “it won’t be simple.” Along with the list of banned sites is a list of platforms that aren’t considered part of the ban – yet. They are Discord, GitHub, Google Classroom, LEGO Play, Messenger, Pinterest, Roblox, Steam and Steam Chat, WhatsApp and YouTube Kids.
The decision to omit Roblox was seen by many Australians as a puzzling choice, given recent reports alleging children have been targeted by adult predators inside its games. That’s raised objections from some adult users who are concerned that they’ll be asked to verify their age. The Age Assurance Technology Trial carried out early this year convinced the government that age checks could be done without compromising privacy.
Platforms are checking ages via live video selfies, email addresses or official documents. According to Yoti, an age verification company whose clients include Meta, most users choose a video selfie which uses facial data points to estimate age.
Source:Here
