Major platforms to deactivate accounts of under-16s in Australia from Dec 10

Post by : Bianca Suleiman

Meta, TikTok and Snap have announced plans to deactivate accounts belonging to Australian users under 16 from December 10, complying with newly enacted national legislation that restricts minors from holding social media profiles.

The statute, described as the first of its kind internationally, obliges technology firms to take "reasonable steps" to prevent under-16s from creating or retaining accounts. Noncompliance could attract fines up to A$49.5 million (about US$32.5 million).

The platforms initially pushed back, warning the measure might drive young people toward less regulated corners of the internet. They have since reversed course and said they will implement the law’s requirements.

Parliamentary figures show Meta — owner of Facebook and Instagram — has flagged roughly 450,000 Australian accounts it believes belong to users under 16. The company says those individuals will be offered the choice of having their data erased or held securely until they reach the minimum age.

TikTok and Snap report similar numbers, with about 200,000 and 440,000 underage accounts respectively, and intend to take comparable steps. All three companies plan to use behaviour-based detection systems to identify profiles that may have misdeclared age. Ella Woods-Joyce, TikTok’s Australian policy lead, said accounts confirmed to be for under-16s will be deactivated from December 10.

Where accounts are incorrectly marked as underage, Meta and TikTok will permit verification through accredited third-party age-assessment tools. Snap has acknowledged it is still finalising a remedy for users who are wrongly blocked.

The measures are being monitored by regulators and governments overseas amid mounting concerns about young people’s mental health and online safety. With Australia pioneering this strict age-based enforcement, policymakers elsewhere are expected to watch closely and may adopt similar rules.