Kids ‘Less Safe’ Under Australia’s Social Media Ban, Says YouTube

YouTube on Wednesday sharply criticised Australia’s upcoming ban on social media use for under-16s, calling the world-first legislation “rushed” and warning it will leave children less safe online rather than more protected.

Under the new law taking effect December 10, Australians under 16 will be barred from accessing major social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

“This law will not fulfil its promise to make kids safer online and will, in fact, make Australian kids less safe on YouTube,” said Rachel Lord, the company’s public policy manager. “We’ve heard these concerns echoed by parents and educators.”

YouTube had initially been exempted from the ban to allow young users access to educational content, but the government reversed its position in July, arguing that children must be shielded from “predatory algorithms”.

As part of compliance, YouTube said all Australian users under 16 will be automatically signed out on December 10 based on the age linked to their Google accounts.

While underage viewers will still be able to watch videos without logging in, they will lose key features including personalised recommendations, wellbeing tools and safety settings.

Lord said the regulation “misunderstands our platform and the way young Australians use it”, stressing that “at YouTube, we believe in protecting kids in the digital world, not from the digital world.”

'Outright weird'

YouTube said affected accounts would be archived rather than erased, allowing underage users to regain full access once they turn 16.

“We will not delete or remove any of their existing content or data — it will be waiting for them when they come back,” the platform said.

Australian Communications Minister Anika Wells dismissed YouTube’s criticism as “outright weird”, arguing the company was effectively admitting its own platform was unsafe for younger audiences.

“If YouTube is reminding us that there is content not appropriate for age-restricted users on their website, that’s a problem YouTube needs to fix,” she said.

The world is closely watching whether Australia’s sweeping restrictions can be enforced as regulators globally grapple with social media risks.

The government has acknowledged the rollout will be imperfect, and some underage users may slip through early loopholes as the system stabilises.

From next week, platforms face fines of up to A$49.5 million (US$32 million) if they fail to take “reasonable steps” to comply.

Meta has already begun deactivating accounts based on the age provided at sign-up.

Meanwhile, an internet rights group has filed a High Court challenge to stop the ban.

The Digital Freedom Project argues the new laws amount to an “unfair” restriction on free speech.