Australia is moving forward with a bold plan to ban social media access for under-16s, but trials of age-verification software suggest young people may still find ways around the system. Since January, 60 software types have been tested on groups of teens, with facial recognition emerging as the most accurate. Some programs could estimate a user’s age down to the month, but students quickly found potential loopholes, such as using older siblings’ photos.

Key Points:

• Australia is trialling tech to enforce a social media ban for under-16s by December.
• 60 products were tested, with facial recognition software proving most accurate.
• Teens participating in trials were tech-savvy and questioned the system’s long-term effectiveness.
• Some software wrongly estimated teen ages by decades.
• Lawmakers and observers worldwide are watching Australia as a model.

While the trial showed some success, results also revealed significant challenges. Teenagers were fast to complete tests and easily identified weak points. Critics question whether any tech can truly block motivated minors from accessing platforms like TikTok, Snapchat, or Instagram. The final results, to be delivered by July, will guide the eSafety Commissioner’s advice. For now, the question remains: will the ban protect kids or push them to get more creative?

Reuters -> Read more here about how it’s all going