Details Beginning to Emerge About Australia's Social Media Ban
Get your VPNs ready! Australia, having already nominated an age limit for social media coming this December (after they work out how it will be implemented), will progress to requiring Australians to verify their identity by logging in to a Microsoft or Google account to access adult material starting with search engines. Stop laughing. No, really. They will. Soon. Ok, two minute laugh session. Moving on. While this change in law is for 'good intentions' and Australian politicians high five themselves for 'protecting children', Professor Lisa Given of the RMIS Information Sciences department was quoted as saying that the changes "will definitely create more headaches for the everyday consumer and how they log in and use search services." Meanwhile, in England where similar laws have been enacted, VPN use has skyrocketed.
Australia's Under 16s Social Media Ban Could Extend to Reddit, Twitch, Roblox and Even Dating AppsAs stated in the law passed late last year, platforms also cannot rely solely on using government-issued ID for age verification, even though the government-backed technology study found this to be the most effective screening method.
Instead, the guidelines will direct platforms to take a "layered" approach to assessing age with multiple methods and to "minimise friction" for their users - such as by using AI-driven models that assess age with facial scans or by tracking user behaviour.
Ms Wells has previously highlighted those models as examples of cutting-edge technology, although the experts have raised questions about their effectiveness.
upstart writes:
Reddit and X are among the companies approached by the eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, right, about the requirement to prevent under 16s from holding social media accounts. Composite: Guardian AustraliaView image in fullscreenReddit and X are among the companies approached by the eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, right, about the requirement to prevent under 16s from holding social media accounts. Composite: Guardian AustraliaAustralia's under 16s social media ban could extend to Reddit, Twitch, Roblox and even dating apps
Lego Play and Steam among the unexpected additions to the list that includes Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and X
Twitch, Roblox, Steam, Lego Play, X and Reddit are among the companies eSafety has approached about whether the under 16s social media ban applies to them from December.
Companies approached by the eSafety commissioner this month about the requirement to prevent under 16s from holding social media accounts from 10 December have conducted a self-assessment that the commissioner will use to decide if they need to comply with the ban.
eSafety will not be formally declaring which service meets the criteria but companies that eSafety believes meet the criteria will be expected to comply.
The eSafety commissioner's office initially declined to release the list of companies contacted earlier this month but on Wednesday named the companies.
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