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Australia is doubling max fines for social media ban violations
Mashable • • world
Key Points:
- Australia plans to double the maximum fine for violating its social media minimum age law from AUD 49.5 million to AUD 99 million, reflecting dissatisfaction with current enforcement efforts.
- Since the Online Safety Amendment Act took effect in December, over five million accounts under age 16 have been removed or restricted on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, X, and YouTube.
- The government aims to expand the eSafety Commissioner's powers to compel social media platforms to provide evidence of their compliance in keeping under-16 users off their services.
- The eSafety Commissioner is currently investigating potential non-compliance on five major platforms, highlighting ongoing enforcement challenges.
- New legislation will also extend the Commissioner's authority to third parties such as age-verification services and app stores, addressing loopholes that previously limited accountability.
