By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
CANBERRA (Worthy News) – Setting a benchmark for jurisdictions worldwide, Australia has banned social media for children under 16. with the government saying that ” the safety of our kids is a priority.”
On Friday, Australians reacted with anger and relief to the ban, which tech giants like TikTok argued could push young people to “darker corners of the internet.”
The law forces tech giants from Instagram and Facebook owner Meta Platforms to TikTok to stop minors from logging in or face fines of up to A$49.5 million ($32 million).
A trial of enforcement methods will start in January, with the ban to take effect in a year.
“We’ve passed important legislation to keep our kids safe online,” said Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in a statement obtained by Worthy News.
“Social media is doing social harm to our kids. We’ve called time on it. We want our kids to have a childhood and parents to know we have their backs,” he added.
BEAUTY FILTERS
It comes amid growing concerns about addiction as well as age-inappropriate content, ranging from sexual to violent materials readily available online for minors.
Experts also warned that girls are using beauty filters at “alarming rates,” with research showing that for many, it makes them “feel worse” about their appearance.
Critics said that despite these concerns, Australia’s government ignored advice from “a chorus of experts,” including the Australian Human Rights Commission, which warned the legislation was “rushed through” parliament.
The Commission said the government had not taken “the time to get the details right, or even know how the ban will work in practice.”
However, a new poll shows 77 percent of Australians support the ban.
Australia is the first known Western democracy to ban social media platforms permanently for minors.
Copyright 1999-2025 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
The Israel Defense Forces announced Thursday that it uncovered one of the most extensive and sophisticated Hamas tunnel systems discovered to date, a sprawling underground route running more than seven kilometers (4.3 miles) and plunging approximately 25 meters (82 feet) underground beneath Rafah.
Six Democratic lawmakers with military or intelligence backgrounds have ignited a political firestorm after releasing a video urging U.S. service members and intelligence personnel to “refuse illegal orders,” drawing sharp reactions from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
The White House was preparing Friday for a highly visible meeting between Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York City, and U.S. President Donald J. Trump amid growing concerns over possible federal troop or National Guard deployments to the city. The made-for-television get-together comes as the president links the influx of migrants — many of them arriving undocumented, or in his words “illegally” — and rising crime in America’s largest city to what he describes as weakened local governance.
A Russian oil tanker under U.S. sanctions made a dramatic U-turn on its way to Venezuela after a U.S. warship appeared in its path near the country’s coast, Worthy News learned early Friday.
A man has been charged with federal terrorism offenses after allegedly dousing a woman with liquid and setting her on fire aboard a Chicago subway train, authorities confirmed Friday, in a case that revived concerns about transit safety amid rising violence in U.S. public-transport systems.
Capitol Hill — the U.S. seat of Congress and legislative center of American government — faced fresh drama Thursday when a small electrical fire broke out in the underground subway system connecting the Rayburn House Office Building to the U.S. Capitol, forcing evacuations.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump met Thursday with a group of freed Israeli hostages and their loved ones at the White House, praising the survivors as “heroes” and vowing continued support for efforts to return remaining captives held in Gaza.