Meta has begun removing Australian users under the age of 16 from Instagram, Facebook, and Threads, acting one week before the country’s new social media restrictions officially begin. The company had previously warned that accounts belonging to 13- to 15-year-olds would start being disabled from 4 December, and that removal process is now underway.
Scale of the Removal
An estimated 150,000 Facebook accounts and roughly 350,000 Instagram accounts are expected to be affected. Because Threads requires an Instagram login, teenagers removed from Instagram will automatically lose access to Threads as well.
Beginning 10 December, Australia will enforce the world’s first nationwide ban preventing people under 16 from holding social media accounts. Platforms that fail to take “reasonable steps” to prevent underage users from signing up face possible penalties of up to A$49.5 million.
More on the law:
🔗 https://www.esafety.gov.au/ (Australia’s eSafety Commissioner)
🔗 https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/ (Communications portfolio site)
Meta’s Position
A Meta spokeswoman told the BBC that the company’s compliance approach would be “ongoing and multi-layered,” though it argued a different system would be more effective. According to Meta, the government should require app stores to verify age at the moment a child attempts to download an app. This, the company says, would eliminate the repetitive burden of verifying age on every platform individually and would better protect user privacy.
Meta has stated that users flagged as under 16 may download and save their posts, messages, photos, and videos before their accounts are deactivated. Teenagers who believe they were misidentified can request a review by submitting a video selfie, or by uploading a form of government identification such as a driver’s licence.
Learn more from Meta’s Safety Center:
🔗 https://about.facebook.com/safety
🔗 https://about.instagram.com/community/safety
Other Platforms Impacted
The ban also applies to:
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YouTube
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X (formerly Twitter)
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TikTok
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Snapchat
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Reddit
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Kick
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Twitch
YouTube, which was initially exempt, later criticized its inclusion, calling the final legislation “rushed” and warning that removing accounts with parental controls may ironically make the platform less safe for younger viewers.
Browse platform safety documentation:
🔗 https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2801999
🔗 https://support.tiktok.com/en/safety-hc
🔗 https://help.snapchat.com/hc/en-us/articles/7012349725332
Government Rationale and Criticism
The Australian government says the measure is designed to shield children from harmful online content and predatory behaviour. Communications Minister Anika Wells acknowledged that the rollout will likely involve “teething problems,” but emphasised that the ban is intended to protect Generation Alpha—today’s under-15 demographic—from what she described as “behavioural cocaine” engineered by predictive algorithms.
Critics argue the ban may isolate vulnerable teens who rely on online platforms for social connection and may inadvertently push them toward less-regulated or more dangerous corners of the internet.
The Data Behind the Decision
A government-commissioned study found:
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96% of Australian children aged 10–15 use social media
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70% encountered harmful content (misogyny, violence, eating disorders, suicide material)
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1 in 7 experienced grooming-type behaviour
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More than half reported being victims of cyberbullying
Report source:
🔗 https://www.esafety.gov.au/research
(Contains publicly accessible, copyright-free summaries and infographics)
Global Implications
As the world’s first policy of its kind, Australia’s under-16 social media ban is attracting international attention. Governments in Europe and North America are reportedly monitoring the rollout closely to assess whether similar restrictions could be implemented elsewhere.