More than eight in ten Australian teenagers are still using social media three months after the country's world-first ban on under-16s took effect — because the platforms failed to implement effective age checks, the national internet regulator has found.
The report, published on 31 July by the eSafety Commissioner as part of a two-year study, found that 81% of children surveyed were still using age-restricted platforms, barely down from 86% before the ban came into force on 10 December 2025. Around 58% reported using social media daily or more often, down only slightly from about 60%. Account ownership did decline, from 52% to 42%, with statistically significant drops on YouTube, Snapchat and TikTok — but most under-16s who had accounts before the ban either kept them or created new ones.
The main reason: half of the children who retained their accounts said platforms had never checked their age, while others said their accounts listed them as 16 or older, or that age-assurance systems incorrectly judged them older. eSafety said it was investigating possible non-compliance by five platforms — Meta's Facebook and Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and Google's YouTube — and the government doubled the maximum penalty for non-compliance in June.
The report also flagged an unintended consequence: parental awareness of children's online activity declined, which could limit early intervention. Reddit, which is challenging its inclusion in the ban in the High Court, saw use rise from 6% to 9%.
