Australia to sue Facebook, TikTok over violations of under-16 social media ban

Since Australia’s world-first ban came into force almost a year ago, the government has doubled the maximum penalty for breaches to A109.2million.

Australia’s government is set to sue Facebook, TikTok and other major digital platforms for alleged non-compliance with a nationwide social media ban for under-16s, Communications Minister Anika Wells said in an interview.

The logos of social media apps with a prohibition sign. (AFP)

The country’s online safety regulator, eSafety Commissioner, said in March it was investigating Facebook and Instagram — both owned by Meta Platforms Inc. — TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube for potentially failing to adhere to the law. The legislation requires the companies to take reasonable steps to stop underage users from holding social media accounts, part of a bid to protect them from harmful online content.

In an interview in Sydney on Monday, Wells said she expected legal action to proceed against the five platforms.

An eSafety report in July found most underage social media users were able to keep their accounts or create new ones, largely due to a lack of effective age checks on the platforms.

Since Australia’s world-first ban came into force almost a year ago, the government has doubled the maximum penalty for breaches to A109.2million(76 million). The government also granted eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant greater investigative powers, including the ability to demand documents from social media platforms and summon current or ex-employees to answer questions.

“Now she has more powers to be able to gather the evidence that she needs to take those five companies to the Federal Court,” Wells said. “She’s now using those powers to prepare her case.”

Spokespersons for Meta and eSafety had no immediate comments. Representatives for Snapchat owner Snap Inc., TikTok and its owner ByteDance Ltd., and YouTube parent Google didn’t immediately reply to emails seeking responses to the minister’s comments.

The eSafety Commissioner is an independent regulator, though part of the government and accountable to Australia’s parliament through the communications minister, a position currently held by Wells. Last week Wells said companies aren’t doing enough to adhere to social media age restrictions.

“The law is not failing — platforms are failing to comply with the law,” Wells said in an Oct. 15 speech to the National Press Club. “We won’t flinch at holding tech companies to account.”