Overview
- The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024 makes it illegal for under-16s to create or maintain accounts on major platforms.
- Services named include Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, X, YouTube, Reddit and Kick.
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the measure protects a generation and acknowledged the rollout "won't be perfect."
- Communications Minister Anika Wells reported a 20-fold jump in eSafety website traffic following a national education campaign.
- Companies must inform users about the upcoming restriction before it begins, though the exact timing of those notices has not been set, and industry critics question scope and guidance.