Australia’s eSafety Watchdog Wants More Teeth Against Big Tech
Synopsis
The regulator says current laws leave it unable to effectively enforce the country's social media age restrictions, prompting calls for expanded powers
Key Highlights
- The eSafety Commissioner says it doesn’t have the legal powers required to enforce Australia’s under-16 social media ban.
- The bill before parliament would double the existing maximum penalties from A$49.5 million to A$99 million, and enhance eSafety’s powers to command documents.
- Five social media platforms are being investigated for compliance with the new rules.
The eSafety Commissioner has called for stronger legal powers to enforce Australia's ban on social media accounts below the age of 16, saying regulators lacked sufficient powers to generate enough evidence to prove companies had not complied.
The appeal comes as the National Children’s Commissioner is reviewing submissions for this year’s Online Safety Amendment (Strengthening Enforcement for the Minimum Age) Bill 2026, which was put before Parliament by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in June.
It would double the maximum penalty for breaches from A$49.5 million to A$99 million and grant the eSafety Commissioner power to order companies to provide documents, such as internal records and board minutes, as part of an A$3000 per day compliance regime.
Five social media platforms, meanwhile, are already under investigation, no company has yet been fined.
Key evidence unavailable to eSafety: report
Regulators have not yet decided if platforms took reasonable steps to prevent under-16s from signing up for their services because, they said at a recent Senate hearing, they cannot obtain the necessary evidence, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant alluded.
The Commissioner has no statutory powers to require companies to create internal documents or obtain information from third parties, like age assurance providers, she said.
In a submission to the eSafety review, it warned that without access to primary documents, the Commissioner would have difficulty meeting the legal threshold for seeking civil penalties in court.
Platforms Outline Their Compliance Measures
High-tech giants are complying with these laws in the minimum-only way, claimed Communications Minister Anika Wells.
TikTok stated that it collects users’ DOB and identifies potential U16 accounts with AI plus human moderators. Once detected, users can appeal account suspensions by submitting proof of their age using facial age estimation, a government ID or a credit card.
YouTube has built on systems already in place that spot users under 13 to help catch those under-16, Google said. It also enables age verification via government ID or a selfie.
X claimed that the reforms should be scrapped, and stated responsibility for age verification should move to OS providers, app stores and device makers.
Other Agencies Want Their Powers Too
The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman said some families have struggled to restore accounts wrongly blocked under the new rules, which could be a model for an ombudsman scheme in keeping with disputes.
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner said it is examining a handful of privacy complaints in relation to the social media age legislation. It also urged wider powers to collect information and conduct privacy assessments.
Communications Minister Anika Wells said she was not happy with what technology companies have done to keep under-16s from being on their platforms, and the government would continue to ramp up enforcement.
Source: Information Age
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