Australia warns Meta, TikTok, Snapchat over failure to enforce under 16 social media ban

Australia has warned major social media companies including Meta, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube that they could face legal action for failing to properly enforce the country’s ban on social media accounts for children under 16 .

The warning came from Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant , who released the first compliance report since the law took effect on December 10 . The rule requires social media platforms to remove accounts belonging to children younger than 16 and prevent new ones from being created.

According to the report, about five million Australian accounts belonging to underage users have already been removed. However, regulators say many children are still able to retain accounts, create new profiles or bypass age verification systems , raising concerns about how effectively the ban is being implemented.

Authorities have identified Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube as platforms where compliance concerns remain. The regulator believes these companies may not have taken “reasonable steps” to stop underage users from accessing their services. If courts determine that platforms have failed to meet their legal obligations, they could face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (about $33 million) for systemic violations.

The Australian government has taken a firm stand on the issue. Communications Minister Anika Wells accused social media companies of doing the bare minimum to meet legal requirements and suggested some platforms may be reluctant to fully implement the rules.

“This is a world leading law ,” Wells said, adding that some technology companies may fear its success could encourage other countries to adopt similar restrictions.

The report also highlighted weak age verification practices , including allowing users unlimited attempts to pass age checks or prompting them to retry verification even after declaring themselves underage.

Technology companies, however, argue that accurately determining a user’s age online remains a major challenge . Meta said it is committed to complying with the law but noted that age verification technology is not yet foolproof. Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, said it has already locked around 450,000 accounts to comply with the regulation.

Meanwhile, the law itself is facing legal challenges in Australia’s High Court , where critics argue the restrictions could affect the country’s implied freedom of political communication. Courts are now expected to decide what qualifies as “reasonable steps” for platforms to keep children off social media.