Teenagers across Australia woke up and were unable to access their social media accounts today.
What happened: Australia’s world-first social media ban took effect today, blocking over one million under-16s from ten major platforms. Platforms face fines up to A$49.5 million for non-compliance.
Platforms banned: Instagram, Facebook, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat, X, Reddit, Twitch, and Kick.
Platforms NOT banned: Discord, Roblox, WhatsApp, Pinterest, Messenger, Steam, and YouTube Kids.
How each platform is responding: Meta finished removing Instagram, Facebook and Threads accounts (they started on December 4). YouTube automatically signed users out, though children can still watch without logging in. TikTok deactivated all under-16 accounts regardless of whose email or name was used. Snapchat suspended accounts for three years or until users turn 16. Twitch is blocking new under-16 accounts but won’t deactivate existing ones until January 9—the company hasn’t explained the delay.
Roblox avoided the ban by agreeing to introduce age verification for chat features, rolling out in Australia this month.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called it “a proud day” for Australian families. But within hours, the workarounds began.
What’s broken:
Google search data shows VPN queries spiking as the ban went live. VPN companies have been advertising directly to Australian teens, promoting their services as a way to mask location and bypass restrictions. The government insists VPNs won’t work if platforms follow eSafety guidelines properly, but that remains to be tested at scale.
More concerning: age verification is already being defeated. One parent posted video of his 15-year-old daughter passing both Snapchat’s and Instagram’s age checks within minutes. Platforms are verifying ages through live video selfies that analyse facial data points, email addresses, or official documents. Age verification company Yoti says most users choose the video selfie option, but determined teens are finding ways through.
Alternative platforms are surging. Photo-sharing app Yope gained 100,000 Australian users by word of mouth as the ban approached. ByteDance’s Lemon8 is being promoted amongst teens as a TikTok backup. Both platforms have been put on notice by the eSafety Commissioner. The regulator says it will keep adding platforms to the banned list as they gain popularity, but critics call this “whack-a-mole”—new platforms will always emerge faster than regulators can ban them.
There’s also an unintended safety issue: parents have lost monitoring tools they had when children had accounts. YouTube itself warned that parental controls “only work when your teen is signed in.” Children can still watch everything on these platforms, they just can’t log in, which means they’re viewing content without filters or age-appropriate protections.
What parents are doing:
Some are relieved. One father whose 16-year-old daughter has never had social media told lawmakers she’s “as tech literate as the next 16-year-old” without TikTok or Instagram eating up hours of her childhood. But others worry the ban pushes teens into darker corners of the internet where there’s even less oversight. Youth counsellors fear children who relied on social media for support networks will migrate to unregulated spaces with no safeguards.
What to consider:
The Prime Minister acknowledges the ban won’t be perfect, comparing it to drinking age laws—teenagers still find alcohol, but the standard matters. The question parents worldwide are watching: does the “message” of a ban outweigh the practical reality that tech-savvy teens will find workarounds?
Australia has committed to measuring outcomes. eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant says officials will track whether children are sleeping more, interacting more, reading more books, going outside more, and taking fewer antidepressants. They’ll also monitor unintended consequences: are children moving to darker areas of the web? Six researchers from Stanford University’s Social Media Lab will gather data alongside an independent Academic Advisory Group of 11 academics from the US, UK and Australia. The research will be published for other countries to review.
Within 24 hours of the ban taking effect, it’s already clear enforcement will be the challenge critics predicted. If VPN usage explodes and teens migrate to unregulated platforms, other countries considering similar bans—Norway, Denmark, Malaysia, and the European Parliament—may reconsider their approach.
This story is developing. We’ll continue monitoring how the ban unfolds—visit wired-parents.com for the latest updates.
