MELBOURNE, Australia. Australia’s House of Representatives passed a bill on Wednesday to ban children under 16 years old from accessing social media platforms, setting the stage for the Senate to finalize the world’s first law of its kind.
The legislation, which received strong bipartisan support, holds platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X, and Instagram accountable with potential fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (USD 33 million) for failing to enforce the age restriction. The bill passed the lower house by a vote of 102 to 13.
If enacted into law, platforms will have one year to develop systems for implementing the ban before penalties are applied.
Opposition lawmaker Dan Tehan confirmed that amendments would be introduced in the Senate to strengthen privacy protections. These changes would prohibit platforms from requiring users to submit government-issued identity documents, such as passports or driver’s licenses, or digital identification through government systems.
“Will it be perfect? No. But is any law perfect? No, it’s not. But if it helps, even if it helps in just the smallest of ways, it will make a huge difference to people’s lives,” Tehan told Parliament.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland assured lawmakers that the bill’s broad support in the Senate all but guarantees its passage. However, independent lawmakers voiced concerns during debates, criticizing the bill as rushed and ineffective in addressing the root causes of social media harm.
Independent lawmaker Zoe Daniel argued the bill might have limited impact. “The true object of this legislation is not to make social media safe by design, but to make parents and voters feel like the government is doing something about it,” Daniel told Parliament. She added, “There is a reason why the government parades this legislation as world-leading, that’s because no other country wants to do it.”
Critics also warned that the ban could isolate children, drive them toward riskier online spaces like the dark web, and dissuade young users from reporting the harms they experience on social media.
Social media companies had requested a delay in the legislation’s passage until at least June 2025, allowing time for a government-commissioned study to evaluate effective age-assurance technologies.
Meanwhile, some Australians see the reform as essential. Wayne Holdsworth, a Melbourne resident whose 17-year-old son, Mac, took his own life last year after falling victim to an online sextortion scam, described the bill as “absolutely essential for the safety of our children.”
“It’s not the only thing that we need to do to protect them because education is the key, but to provide some immediate support for our children and parents to be able to manage this, it’s a great step,” Holdsworth told The Associated Press. He called the reform “the greatest time in our country’s history.”
The Senate will debate the bill later on Wednesday. If passed, Australia will set a global precedent for regulating children’s access to social media while sparking further debates on privacy, safety, and digital rights worldwide.
Paraluman P. Funtanilla
Paraluman P. Funtanilla is Tutubi News Magazine's Marketing Specialist and is a Contributing Editor. She finished her degree in Communication Arts in De La Salle Lipa. She has worked as a Digital Marketer for start-up businesses and small business spaces for the past two years. She has earned certificates from Coursera on Brand Management: Aligning Business Brand and Behavior and Viral Marketing and How to Craft Contagious Content. She also worked with Asia Express Romania TV Show.
