Meta has started booting Australian children under 16 years off its Instagram, Facebook, and Threads platforms, a week before an official teen social media ban begins.
The tech giant announced last month that it had begun notifying users aged between 13 to 15 years old that their accounts would start being shut down from 4 December. An estimated 150,000 Facebook users and 350,000 Instagram accounts are expected to be affected. Threads, which is similar to X, can only be accessed via an Instagram account.
Australia's world-first social media ban starts on 10 December, with companies facing fines of up to A$49.5m (US$33m, £25m) if they fail to take 'reasonable steps' to stop under-16s from having accounts.
A spokesperson for Meta stated that 'compliance with the law will be an ongoing and multi-layered process'. While they support the law, they believe in a more standardized, privacy-friendly approach for age verification.
Meta has ensured that young users whose accounts are deactivated will have the ability to download and save their posts before the shutdown.
Additionally, there are concerns about how this ban will impact children's social experiences, with critics warning it might isolate groups reliant on these platforms for connection. The Australian government states the aim is to safeguard children from potential harms presented by social media, while communications minister Anika Wells highlighted the need to protect future generations from harmful online behaviors.
The tech giant announced last month that it had begun notifying users aged between 13 to 15 years old that their accounts would start being shut down from 4 December. An estimated 150,000 Facebook users and 350,000 Instagram accounts are expected to be affected. Threads, which is similar to X, can only be accessed via an Instagram account.
Australia's world-first social media ban starts on 10 December, with companies facing fines of up to A$49.5m (US$33m, £25m) if they fail to take 'reasonable steps' to stop under-16s from having accounts.
A spokesperson for Meta stated that 'compliance with the law will be an ongoing and multi-layered process'. While they support the law, they believe in a more standardized, privacy-friendly approach for age verification.
Meta has ensured that young users whose accounts are deactivated will have the ability to download and save their posts before the shutdown.
Additionally, there are concerns about how this ban will impact children's social experiences, with critics warning it might isolate groups reliant on these platforms for connection. The Australian government states the aim is to safeguard children from potential harms presented by social media, while communications minister Anika Wells highlighted the need to protect future generations from harmful online behaviors.
