By COMFORT OGBONNA
Meta has removed more than 750,000 Facebook and Instagram accounts in Australia that it suspected were operated by people younger than 16, as the technology company steps up enforcement of the country’s first nationwide social media age restriction for teenagers.
The company said it had deactivated about 462,000 Instagram accounts and 294,000 Facebook accounts between the period shortly before the restrictions took effect in December and June. The figures represent a substantial increase from the approximately 331,000 Instagram accounts and 173,000 Facebook accounts Meta said it had removed by January.
Meta said its enforcement efforts remain ongoing and that the number of accounts removed is expected to continue rising.
Australia’s under-16 social media restrictions took effect Dec. 10 after lawmakers approved the measure amid concerns about the effects of social media on children and younger teenagers. The rules require covered platforms to take reasonable steps to prevent users under 16 from maintaining accounts.
Meta and other technology companies have strongly criticized the restrictions, arguing that enforcing age limits across large online platforms presents significant technical and privacy challenges. Despite its opposition to the policy, Meta has said it intends to comply with Australia’s legal requirements.
The company’s latest figures come as Australian authorities consider tougher action against social media platforms that may not be doing enough to prevent children under 16 from accessing their services.
Australian officials have proposed increasing the maximum penalty for companies that fail to comply with the law to 99 million Australian dollars, equivalent to about $69.75 million. The proposed changes would also give regulators broader powers to obtain documents and other information from technology companies.
The government has argued that stronger penalties are necessary to ensure platforms take the age restriction seriously.
However, data collected since the restrictions began suggest that preventing children from accessing social media remains difficult. Government figures and independent studies have indicated that more than eight in 10 Australian children under 16 continued to use social media during the first three months of the restrictions.
The findings have raised questions about whether platforms can reliably determine a user’s age and prevent young people from creating new accounts or accessing services through other methods.
Meta said it is relying increasingly on artificial intelligence and other automated systems to identify accounts that may belong to children younger than 16.
The company said its technology examines profiles for contextual clues that could indicate a user’s age. Those clues can include references to school grades, birthday celebrations and other information that could suggest the account belongs to someone under the minimum age.
Meta also reviews reports from users concerning suspected underage accounts and has introduced measures designed to make it more difficult for people to immediately create another account after an account has been removed for violating the age requirement.
Age-verification technology has become a central part of the debate. An Australian government trial conducted in 2025 found that age-assurance technologies available on the market could potentially support enforcement of the country’s restrictions.
Several major social media companies have introduced age-estimation tools that can analyze photographs or other information to estimate whether a user is likely to be under a particular age.
Platforms have also explored systems that infer a user’s age from online behavior before requiring additional verification. Technology companies say these methods can help identify younger users, although concerns remain about accuracy, privacy and the possibility of users finding ways around the systems.
Meta said it shares the Australian government’s goal of providing young people with safer and age-appropriate online experiences and believes it is meeting its obligations under the law.
The company’s compliance efforts will face additional scrutiny as representatives from Meta, TikTok, Google and Snapchat are scheduled to appear before an Australian parliamentary inquiry. Government officials and regulatory representatives are also expected to give evidence.
The Australian policy is being closely watched by governments in other countries, several of which are considering their own restrictions on children’s access to social media.
The debate has become increasingly focused on whether age limits can be effectively enforced without requiring platforms to collect excessive personal information from users.
For Meta, the removal of more than 750,000 suspected underage accounts demonstrates the scale of the company’s enforcement efforts. But the continued use of social media by large numbers of children under 16 also highlights the difficulties platforms face in enforcing a nationwide age restriction.
Australian regulators are expected to continue monitoring the companies’ compliance and could take further action if they determine that platforms are not doing enough to prevent underage users from accessing their services.
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