Children's social media bans: Australia reviews, UK consults

Countries around the world are at different stages regarding potential children's social media bans. Australia's ban on accounts for minors under age 16 and related requirements, including age verification, represents a model for other countries to consider as they work toward policies that fit their jurisdiction.

While Australia's ban only took force 10 Dec. 2025, the eSafety Commissioner is beginning a new multiyear evaluation to track how the policy matures. Commissioner Julia Inman Grant's office announced the review will monitor more than 4,000 children and families' adoption of the ban over a two-year span with the aim to "understand how the new obligation on platforms is working in practice — and what impact it is having on children, young people and families."

The study will include empirical data from child surveys and parent interviews covering "lived experiences" with the ban, as well as connecting survey results to administrative datasets. It will also institute privacy-protected smartphone tracking on an opt-in basis, with the aim to collect data on "app use, time spent and time of day."

"We know young people are central to the evaluation that's why members of the eSafety Youth Council are helping shape the research and interpret emerging findings, ensuring young people's voices and experiences remain front and center," Inman Grant said in a statement. She added the "blended approach" to research was adopted to "ensure the evaluation is rigorous, credible and grounded in real world experience."

The early returns on the ban's implementation have been mixed.

In February, Australian teenagers told ABC News the ban has not had its intended effect and age-estimation technology aimed at preventing minors' access can allegedly be bypassed in various ways. One teen called the ban "completely useless," noting how he bypassed age checks to remain on Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram with little hassle.

Meanwhile, jurisdictions around the world are becoming increasingly open to limits on children's social media access, including bans or other restrictions.

Many European countries, including the Czech Republic, France, Ireland and Spain, are engaged on proposed national policies inspired by Australia while the European Commission is exploring social media age restrictions across the block through its action plan against cyberbullying. India, the U.K. and the U.S. — at the federal and state levels — are considering different versions of restrictions.

UK launches consultation on children's online safety, including social media restrictions

Children's social media limits are just one of the items on the docket in the new public consult opened by the U.K. Department of Science, Innovation and Technology. The government teased the stakeholder consultation in January.

In addition to a potential ban and what age range a ban should cover, the government is seeking stakeholder views on means to combat addictive platform features, whether children should be able to access artificial intelligence chatbots and how to meaningfully enhance age verification requirements.

In a statement, DSIT Secretary Liz Kendall said the overall objective is to "create a digital world that gives young people the childhood they deserve and prepares them for the future."

"This is why we're asking children and parents to take part in this landmark consultation on how young people can thrive in an age of rapid technological change," she added.

The consultation follows a busy start to 2026 for the U.K. in its quest to improve children's online safety.

The U.K. has led the charge globally on improving enforcement against nonconsensual explicit AI-generated deepfakes. It adopted a new Data (Use and Access) Act regulation in January that criminalizes explicit deepfake generation. A month later, the government added a 48-hour removal rule for nonconsensual explicit images.

The Office of Communications has been especially active on children's matters. It's issued two fines in the last month over alleged violation of the Online Safety Act age verification requirements. It also an open probe into explicit deepfake generation by social platform X's Grok and another investigation to review adult AI companion providers.