Why is the Albanese Government increasing social media penalties?

The Albanese Government is increasing the maximum penalty for systematic breaches of the under‑16 social media law to $99 million because, six months into the regime, it says large platforms are still not doing enough to keep younger teenagers off their services and tougher sanctions are needed to drive compliance.

What are the key changes to the eSafety Commissioner’s powers under the new law?

The new law will give the eSafety Commissioner stronger information‑gathering powers, allowing the regulator to compel social media companies and relevant third parties, such as age‑verification and app‑store providers, to hand over documents and data showing what they have done to stop under‑16s from obtaining or keeping accounts.

How is the under‑16 social media minimum age law performing so far?

Government figures show more than 5 million accounts linked to users under 16 have been removed, deactivated or restricted since the ban started on 10 December 2025, but the Government says there are still too many children on social media and that some platforms appear to be taking a “bare minimum” approach to compliance.

What does the higher $99 million penalty mean for social media platforms operating in Australia?

The higher $99 million maximum penalty means that social media platforms facing systematic breaches of the minimum age law could face fines broadly aligned with penalties available under competition and consumer law, and the Government says this signals the seriousness of failures to comply with Australia’s online safety rules for under‑16s.

How is the eSafety Commissioner currently engaging with major social media platforms?

The eSafety Commissioner is actively investigating potential non‑compliance by Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube under the minimum age regime and will use the expanded powers, if passed, to demand detailed information on each platform’s age‑assurance measures, enforcement practices and cooperation with third‑party verification systems.

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Albanese Government doubles penalty to $99m as tech giants face under-16 social media scrutiny

Written by Brie CarterPublished Jun 29, 2026, 1:52 AM

The Albanese Government plans to double the maximum penalty for systematic breaches of Australia’s under‑16 social media law to $99 million
The eSafety Commissioner will gain stronger powers to compel platforms and third parties to provide evidence of how they are keeping under‑16s off social media
The Government says tougher tools are needed as investigations into Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube continue six months into the minimum age regime

The Albanese Government plans to strengthen Australia’s social media minimum age law by giving the eSafety Commissioner broader information‑gathering powers and doubling the maximum penalty for systematic breaches from $49.5 million to $99 million.

The changes follow six months of the under‑16s ban, during which more than 5 million accounts held by users under 16 have been removed, deactivated or restricted, but the Government says platforms are still not doing enough to comply with the law compared with expectations when the regime was introduced in December 2025.

“Australia is leading the world in our efforts to keep kids and young people safe online,” said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Under the proposed legislation, the eSafety Commissioner will be able to compel social media companies to provide detailed information and documents showing how they are preventing under‑16s from creating or maintaining accounts, including data from third‑party age assurance or app‑store providers that may help test platforms’ claims.

The Government says the increased penalty brings sanctions for systematic non‑compliance into line with competition and consumer law settings, and it intends the new powers to support more robust investigations and enforcement action where platforms fail to meet Australian requirements.

Following the announcement, Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), Snap (NYSE:SNAP), Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL), ByteDance‑owned TikTok and YouTube face closer regulatory scrutiny in Australia as the eSafety Commissioner investigates how each platform is enforcing the under‑16 minimum age law and verifying users’ ages across their services.

Communications Minister Anika Wells says the eSafety Commissioner is actively investigating potential non‑compliance by Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, and argues that the tougher powers and penalties are needed to ensure some of the world’s largest tech companies meet their legal and social responsibilities to keep younger teenagers off social media.

Albanese Government doubles penalty to $99m as tech giants face under-16 social media scrutiny

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