Australia Says Under-16 Social Media Ban Has Removed Nearly 5 Million Teen Accounts

By Blessing Nweke

Social media companies have deactivated almost five million accounts belonging to Australian teenagers just one month after a world-first ban on under- 16 took effect, according to new figures released Friday by the country’s internet regulator.

The Safety Commissioner said platforms have so far removed about 4.7 million accounts held by users under 16 to comply with legislation that came into force on Dec. 10. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the early results showed the policy was having a swift and sweeping impact.

“Today, we can announce that this is working,” Albanese told reporters. “This is a source of Australian pride. This was world-leading legislation, but it is now being followed up around the world.”

The Australian ban, which applies to major platforms including Meta’s Instagram, Facebook and Threads, as well as YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat and Elon Musk’s X, is being closely watched by governments globally. France, Malaysia and Indonesia have all said they plan to introduce similar laws, while some European countries and U.S. states are considering comparable measures.

The new data represents the first official snapshot of compliance and suggests companies are taking significant steps to avoid penalties of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for violations. The law does not penalize children or their parents.

The total far exceeds pre-ban estimates and equates to more than two accounts for every Australian aged 10 to 16. Meta previously disclosed that it had removed around 550,000 underage accounts across its platforms.