New regulations that came into effect on December 10 target the ten most popular social media platforms, including Tik. Tok, Instagram, Facebook, You. Tube, and Snapchat. So far, around 200,000 Tik. Tok accounts belonging to minors have been blocked. Communications Minister Anika Wells stated that platforms must report monthly for six months on account deactivations, with fines up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (32.9 million US dollars) threatened for violations.
Despite these measures, teenagers across the country quickly found ways to circumvent the ban. Fourteen-year-old Lucy Brooks and her friends, after losing access to Snapchat, created new accounts within a day using photos of their parents and older friends. Other young users employ tricks during face recognition tests, such as frowning or hiding their teeth, as well as makeup and false eyelashes to appear older teenagers across the country quickly found ways to circumvent the ban[1].
Fifteen-year-old Sydney resident Noah Jones admitted he regained access to Snapchat simply by frowning at the camera[4]. Similarly, Shar, also 15, who gave her real age, continues to use Tik. Tok, Instagram, and Snapchat, emphasizing that she doesn’t know anyone her age who has lost access to these platforms
Another popular way to bypass the ban is through virtual private networks (VPNs). Platforms claim they can detect such attempts; however, Snapchat explains it considers the account’s location activity over the past month[5] not just the current IP address. Meta analyzes additional signals beyond the IP address itself to determine user location Virtual private networks (VPNs) have become another popular way to bypass the ban[6].
On Friday, Reddit filed a lawsuit in the High Court of Australia arguing that the ban violates freedom of political expression[7].The company seeks exemption from the regulations, claiming it does not meet the definition of social media. The lawsuit emphasizes that those under 16 will soon become voters, and their decisions will be shaped by participating in political discussions even before reaching adulthood
The ban has also caused unintended consequences. Kiera Cronk, a 30-year-old dance teacher and mother of three from Hobart, was mistakenly blocked on her business accounts on Facebook and Instagram because the system wrongly identified her as under 16. Due to the blockage, she couldn’t stop paid ads costing her around 250 dollars per week Kiera Cronk, a 30-year-old dance teacher and mother of three from Hobart, was mistakenly blocked[10].
Julie Inman Grant, the electronic safety commissioner responsible for enforcing the ban, issued notices to all ten platforms[11] Minister Anika Wells acknowledged that implementing the ban won’t be easy[13] and warned that evading the rules today doesn’t guarantee future success
The ban excludes messaging services like Whats. App, gaming platforms such as Roblox[14], and educational tools including Google Classroom. Other countries like Denmark, Malaysia, New Zealand, and some US states are closely watching Australian measures and considering introducing similar regulations