4.7 Million Child Social Media Accounts Deleted in Australia

According to the Australian eSafety commissioner, early data from social media companies indicate they are taking meaningful measures to prevent under-16s from using their platforms. The ban comes after the country decided to stop children under 16 years of age from accessing social media.

Platforms deleted around 4.7 million underage accounts in the first half of December. Safety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant noted she is very pleased with these preliminary results, adding that its regulatory guidance and engagement with the platforms are already delivering significant outcomes. She suggested that while some positive changes are clearly evident, some longer-term normative changes and related positive impacts on Australian children and families may take years to fully manifest.

Grant explained that Australia is at the very beginning of the journey, and it is evident that platforms are taking different approaches based on their individual circumstances, resulting in variations in the data and outcomes currently surfaced. Earlier this week, Meta Platforms said it removed nearly 550,000 accounts across its Instagram, Facebook, and Threads apps between 4 December and 11 December to comply with the new law.