A significant policy change is set to take effect in Australia, as children under the age of 16 will be barred from accessing major social media platforms, including Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, X, YouTube, and Kick, starting December 10, 2025. The initiative, supervised by Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, aims to enhance online safety for younger users by mandating that these platforms take “reasonable steps” to prevent underage accounts.
While the specifics of these reasonable measures remain unclear, the eSafety Commissioner has indicated that platforms will have the flexibility to choose their preferred methods for verifying user ages. Notably, the legislation will not compel users to present a government-issued ID or rely on an Australian Government accredited digital ID service for age verification. Instead, alternative options will be provided to ensure that users aged 16 and older can create accounts without having to disclose government identification.
Concerns surrounding data privacy have emerged in light of this new regulation. The eSafety Commissioner assures that any collected information will be stored securely; however, skepticism persists regarding the potential risks associated with gathering additional data, especially given the history of data breaches experienced by various online platforms.
Meanwhile, a few popular platforms, including Discord, GitHub, LEGO Play, Roblox, Steam, Google Classroom, Messenger, WhatsApp, and YouTube Kids, have been excluded from these restrictions and will not be subject to the same age verification requirements.
To facilitate compliance with the upcoming changes, the Australian government has launched a dedicated online hub aimed at parents, children, and educators. This resource aims to assist stakeholders in understanding the new rules and preparing for the implementation date.
As Australia takes this bold step towards regulating online spaces for minors, it reflects a growing global interest in enhancing internet safety for younger audiences.