Australia’s Landmark Social Media Ban Struggles to Change Teen Habits

Despite Australia's recent social media ban for kids under 16, new peer-reviewed research shows most young Australians are still accessing the big platforms in the first few months, with only minor changes in their online habits.

The study, led by researchers from the University of Sydney and a number of Australian institutions, looked at adolescent social media use post the law came into effect in December of 2025. There was no significant drop in platform utilization in the first three months after implementation.

Over a third of teens surveyed said they continued to engage in social media activities, such as the popular apps Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat. The results are one of the first independent evaluations of one of the world's first national social media restrictions for under 16s.

The bill comes as part of a comprehensive package of measures the Australian Government has introduced in response to issues of exposure to harmful content, wellbeing impacts of excessive social media and cyberbullying.

The legal fines are up to A$49.5 million for social media platforms that don't take "reasonable measures" to prevent minors from using their platforms.

Enforcement is still a large obstacle, researchers said. Age-verification is a different process on different platforms and some teens are still getting to them via existing accounts or other means.

The results coincide with governments in other markets considering similar measures. In the UK, there is a review of tougher age-based online safety standards and in various European nations such as Germany and France, policy makers have discussed more stringent age restrictions for younger internet users.

This research also comes at a time when the use of social media by youths is under increasing investigation around the world. Social media use in Australia continues to be well above the proportion of people in the nation, according to DataReportal's 2026 Digital Australia report, highlighting the magnitude of the regulatory challenge for the government and technology businesses.

Researchers warned that it is a relatively new law, and it will be years before long-term monitoring results are in to see if there is a change in behaviour over time. But there are indications so far that the Australia social media ban has yet to significantly impact the way most young people, aged under 16, use social media.

Source: AFP

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