Key facts
- Australia plans to double potential fines for social media platforms that fail to prevent children from holding accounts.
- The maximum fine will increase to 99 million Australian dollars ($68 million).
- The eSafety Commissioner's powers to demand information and documents will be increased.
- The legislation aims to address platforms' alleged resistance to age restrictions for users under 16.
- Seven in 10 children remained on restricted platforms as of March, according to eSafety.
Australia is set to double potential fines for social media platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, that fail to prevent underage children from holding accounts. Communications Minister Anika Wells announced that draft legislation will be introduced this week to increase the maximum fine to 99 million Australian dollars ($68 million).
Wells stated that the move is a response to the platforms' resistance to enforcing age restrictions, which came into effect on December 10. She expressed that the current scheme is not working as effectively as desired due to Big Tech's perceived lack of cooperation.
The proposed amendments will also grant the eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, enhanced powers to demand information and documents from platforms to ensure compliance with Australian law. This includes the ability to obtain information from third parties, such as age assurance technology providers, to investigate how children are circumventing the ban.
Senior opposition lawmaker Jane Hume indicated that her party would consider supporting the reforms, acknowledging that the initial legislation was "undercooked" and that the eSafety Commissioner lacked sufficient powers. The original ban, passed with broad parliamentary support in 2024, provided platforms with over 12 months to implement the restrictions.
Despite the ban, eSafety reported in March that seven out of ten children who had accounts on restricted platforms on December 10 remained active. Inman Grant had previously considered legal action against platforms like YouTube for not taking adequate steps to exclude children, while expressing satisfaction with the progress of X, Kick, Reddit, Threads, and Twitch. Wells confirmed that monthly updates from eSafety since March have not shown improvements, reinforcing the need for the new legislative tools.