The government Australian is preparing to introduce “world-first” legislation to prohibit social networks for all children under 16 years of age, without exceptions if they have their parents’ permission.
The tech giants behind platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X They will only be one year old since the law is passed to figure out how to enforce the strict age limit.
The legislation will be introduced in Parliament during its final two weeks of session this year, starting November 18and could have repercussions around the world.
“Social media is harming our children and I want to put an end to it,” said Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albaneseadding that he had spoken to “thousands of parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles” about the issue.
“They, like me, are very concerned about the safety of our children online,” the Labor politician said. “I want Australian families to know the government has their back. I want parents to be able to say: ‘Sorry, buddy, that’s against the law.’“.
There will be no exemptions if children already have accounts, or if their parents or guardians give them permission to use the sites. However, there may be some “exclusions and exemptions” to “make sure there are no unintended consequences,” Albanese said, for example in cases where sites are needed to continue accessing educational services.
Albanese said children and parents They will not be punished for breaking the rules, But it will be the social media companies that will face sanctions.