Australia bans children under 16 from using social media.

The Australian government will enact legislation banning children under 16 from using social media, and will severely punish platforms that fail to comply with the minimum age requirement.

The Australian government has announced it will enact legislation regarding social media related to children. This is a world- leading effort to address the dangers that social media poses to young people.

Australia prohibits children under 16 from using social media.

Children under 16 will be banned from using social media. Companies providing social media platforms will be fined if they fail to ensure compliance. "Social media is harming our children and I am calling for an end to that," declared Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The bill will be presented to Parliament during the final two weeks of this year's session, which begins on November 18th.

Mr. Albanese told reporters that the age limit would take effect 12 months after the law is passed. Platforms like X, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook need to take advantage of that time to prevent Australian children under 16 from accessing them. "I've spoken to thousands of parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. They, like me, are worried about the safety of our children online," Mr. Albanese shared.

Social media platforms will be fined for violating age restrictions, but minors and their parents will not be penalized. "It is the responsibility of the social media platforms to demonstrate that they are taking reasonable steps to prevent access. The responsibility will not fall on parents, or the young people," Albanese said.

Meta's chief safety officer, Antigone Davis, the company behind Facebook and Instagram, said their platforms would respect any age restrictions set by the government. "However, what's missing is a deeper discussion of how we implement these safeguards, otherwise we risk making ourselves feel better as though we've acted, but teenagers and parents won't find themselves in a better position," Davis said.

She added that more powerful tools in app stores and operating systems to allow parents to control which apps their children can use would be a simple and effective solution.

More than 140 Australian and international academics with expertise in technology-related fields and child welfare signed an open letter to Mr. Albanese last month opposing age limits on social media, arguing that it is "too blunt a tool to effectively address risks."

Jackie Hallan, director of the youth mental health service ReachOut, opposes the ban. She said that 73% of young people across Australia access mental health support through social media. "We feel uncomfortable with the ban. We think that young people are able to circumvent the law and the concern is that it really pushes that behavior into the shadows and then if something happens, young people are less likely to get support from parents and caregivers because they could get into trouble," Hallan told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

Child psychologist Philip Tam said a minimum age of 12 or 13 would be easier to enforce. However, the Australian Prime Minister reassured that there would be exceptions and exemptions, such as the need for continued access to educational services.

(Source: ABC)

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/australia-cam-tre-em-duoi-16-tuoi-su-dung-mang-xa-hoi-192241109074551178.htm