Why some countries could copy Australia’s ban on children’s social media use

The decision has sparked debate, with some people expressing skepticism about the law’s impact and questioning how the ban will be enforced.

Tech companies have opposed the rules, and some privacy and rights groups have noted that a blanket ban could push children to access less regulated parts of the internet.

But other governments could follow suit. Some, like New Zealand, have announced they will talk to their Australian counterparts as they develop their own policies to limit the time children spend on social media.

Below are some of the countries and regions that are considering whether to adopt a equally aggressive approach like Australia’s or adopt a different strategy.

Denmark could become the first European country to follow Australia’s example and introduce a national age limit for social media use.

In November, the government announced a plan to ban children under 15 from using these platforms.

The Danish proposal does not go as far as the Australian one, since parents could authorize their children to use social networks from the age of 13.

Still, if the proposal becomes law, Denmark would have the most drastic restrictions in the European Union.

“We are taking a necessary stand against a development in which big tech platforms have had free rein in children’s bedrooms for too long,” Caroline Stage Olsen, Denmark’s digital affairs minister, said in a statement when the plan was announced.

The government cited evidence that tech companies had built their business models around user retention, and said in a separate statement that this could lead to addiction.

The government has not explained how the ban will be enforced, but some lawmakers hope the measures could become law next year.

In November, the government announced plans to ban children under 16 from using social media from 2026.

The Ministry of Communications said it was considering measures to force Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok to verify the age of their users.

One way to do this would be through an electronic “Know Your Customer” (eKYC) system.

This system is used by financial institutions to verify a person’s identity using identification cards, biometric authentication, and other government-issued documents.

Last week, Fahmi Fadzil, the communications minister, told local media that he would consult Australian authorities for guidance on how to carry out a similar ban.

The European Union has historically been one of the toughest regulators of tech companies, and top officials have suggested they could go further, even adopting similar tactics to those of Australia.

In September, Ursula von der Leyenpresident of the European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, urged member states to pay attention to the new laws.

“I firmly believe that parents, not algorithms, should be raising our children,” he said in his State of the Union address.

“Our friends in Australia are pioneers in restricting social media.”

Von der Leyen said she would convene a panel of experts to advise her on how the bloc should respond later this year.

The legislators of France, Spain and Romania They have also floated the idea of ​​following Australia’s ban.

Rather than ban children from social media use entirely, Britain has used existing privacy laws to try limit access to content considered harmful.

In July, the government passed a law requiring users to prove they are over 18 to access online information that could be considered harmful.

The law forced pornography sites, as well as some dating and chat apps, to introduce age controls or face a hefty fine.

China has some of the world’s strictest restrictions on internet use, blocking many Western platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat from operating on the mainland.

But the country has a wide range of local social media sites, including Douyinthe Chinese version of TikTok, and authorities have imposed limits on the time children can spend on such platforms.

In 2021, Beijing restricted the time children could spend playing video games to three hours per weekfrom 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Two years ago, the country’s internet regulator proposed tightening restrictions, limiting smartphone use by children under 8 years old to 40 minutes a day.

The limit would increase with age, until reaching two hours a day for those between 16 and 18 years old.

The Children’s Privacy Protection Act on the Internet prevents companies from collecting personal data from users under 13 years of age. But a blanket ban on children’s use of social media would be difficult to implement in the United States, in part because each state has its own laws.

Some states have taken steps to restrict its use, but those efforts have been challenged in court on free speech grounds.