Australia's social media curbs set to protect kids

With Australia's world-first social media ban set to take effect in a few months, experts are emphasizing that digital literacy education remains crucial to protecting children online.

The Australian government introduced the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill last November, which was approved by parliament during the same month. The initiative marked the world's first nationwide legislation to set a minimum age of 16 for using social media.

The law will take effect on Dec 10, making it illegal for social media platforms to permit users under this age to create or maintain accounts.

According to the law, the responsibility lies squarely with social media platforms to implement such protections — if they fail to take "reasonable steps" to prevent minors from accessing their services, they face fines of up to A$49.5 million ($31.9 million) for systemic breaches.

"Parents are the first line of defense to protect children online," said Lesley-Anne Ey, an associate professor in the Department of Education Futures at the University of South Australia.

In a media release issued on Aug 19, she said that parents and schools must continue online safety conversations to ensure that children can navigate the digital world safely and responsibly — regardless of their age.

"From the moment children start using devices, parents need to be having age-appropriate conversations about the content they access and how they interact and behave online," Ey said.

She said that children need to understand that anything they post — text, photos or videos — might remain online and accessible for years, and that harmful behaviors such as sexting, AI-generated deep fakes, online bullying and grooming should be clearly identified as such.

"Because children's brains are still developing, they often act on impulse without considering the consequences. They're naturally more inclined to take risks and assume they're safe — but the reality is they're not, and they need strategies to protect themselves," she said.

YouTube included

Australia announced on July 30 that YouTube will be included in its under-16 social media laws, meaning that from Dec 10, children under 16 in Australia will be banned from registering accounts on YouTube, along with other online platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and X.

"Social media has a social responsibility, and there is no doubt that Australian kids are being negatively impacted by online platforms, so I'm calling time on it," said Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on July 20.

In response to the government's new policy, YouTube stated that it "is a video-sharing platform with a library of free, high-quality content, increasingly viewed on TV screens. It's not social media".

Although laws play a role in shielding youth from harmful online content, Ey from the University of South Australia said the real impact lies in building digital literacy across all platforms.

"Online safety isn't a one-off talk or an age restriction to delay use," she said. "It's an ongoing conversation between schools, families, and children to help them navigate the digital world safely and responsibly.

"Because in the end, it's not just about keeping children off social media — it's about giving them the knowledge, confidence, and skills to thrive safely in a digital world that will only keep growing," Ey said.

xinxin@chinadaily.com.cn