Australia Passes World’s First Ban on Social Media for Minors–Will the United States Follow Suit?

Story by Maestro Joyner. Photo courtesy of Kenneth Cheung via Istock.

On November 28th, 2024 the Australian parliament passed the Online Safety Amendment (Socials Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024. It got 34 votes to 19 votes. This bill is a direct commitment of the Australian government to support parents and protect young people from the dangers of harmful information posted on social media platforms. Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese claimed that there’s a link between the rise of social media and the decline of the mental health of young Australians. 

The bill outright bans users under 16 from accessing social media platforms and threatens platforms with hefty fines of up to AU$50 million (US$32 million). Specific platforms aren't stated in the bill, but according to Communications Minister Michelle Rowland, social media platforms such as Snapchat, Tik Tok, Reddit, Facebook, X (formally Twitter), and Instagram are likely to be included. YouTube will be excluded due to its use for educational purposes. 

The question now is, will the United States follow suit with KOSA, The Kids Online Safety Act, which would protect minors browsing the internet from what’s considered inappropriate or harmful content. There are concerns about if it will really protect children. 

The Online Safety Amendment and KOSA have the same end goal–to protect minors from the dangers that inhabit the internet. But, the public is unaware of many of these child protection laws to control what citizens can post online. The government wanting to control what the public posts, sees, or interacts with is a new phenomenon. As laws are being implemented, there is a risk that KOSA becomes a reality, which would not only affect minors who are supposed to be protected, but adults who want to post their lives on social media.

This is especially worrisome since Donald Trump wants to get rid of the Department of Education, meaning the narrative the government is trying to push under the guise of “protecting children” would not be exposed to the general public. Education, websites, articles, and social media help keep people in the loop on what the government is doing and provide insight on the types of tactics they could use to deceive the public.   

Regardless of what happens, minors will still try to find loopholes to get access to social media, as they crave social interaction with friends and online creators. Outright banning them will only make the verification system harder to crack, all while parents are oblivious to what is happening as they aren't paying attention. 

Even as social media creates measures to keep minors off platforms, parents have to be rigorous by putting their foot down and adding restrictions on their children's devices to keep them safe. In addition, schools should be educating children on how to spot suspicious individuals or activity online.

Parents should stop relying on the government to babysit or guide their kids, and the government should stop the tactic of using “kids safety” to hide behind efforts to collect data or control citizens' consumption. To educate yourself and stay in touch with current events about the Online Safety Amendment, click here. For KOSA, click here. 

Maestro Joyner is a senior at Friendship Collegiate Academy.