Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant has confirmed that her agency will enforce the Parliament’s impending ban on under 16s accessing social media.
Social media corporations could face fines of $49.5 million (US$32.3 million) for failing to take reasonable steps to prevent children from holding an account.
“I am here to enforce the laws. And this is a matter for Parliament,” said eSafety Commissioner Inman-Grant on ABC Radio on Nov. 25.
“There’s an inquiry happening today, and what I have continued to say is that it is really, really important that any bill like this is nationally consistent.
“So all of these need to work in tandem together. And we will see what the outcomes of the inquiry are, and of course, we will enforce and carry out what the will of the Parliament is.”
She added that it was important to ensure that particularly vulnerable and marginalised children still have a way to connect, create, and explore.
“So whatever we do when we implement what will become the law, we will try and do this in a way that is really protective of the range of children’s rights, including their ability to communicate and express themselves online,” she said.
The eSafety commissioner said she had just returned from a 10-day trip in Europe, where she met with 30 different online safety regulators.
There, they discussed making online platforms create “safety by design” features for their users.
“I think that’s really important because these algorithms are opaque, and they can send people down rabbit holes. We’ve been promoting safety by design for more than six years. And unfortunately, we’ve only seen social media sites moving incrementally, not monumentally, in terms of keeping kids safe,” Inman-Grant said.
The commissioner was also asked if she had concerns on the role X owner Elon Musk will play in the incoming Trump administration.
“Well, my job is not to be concerned with what Elon Musk is doing unless he is hurting the safety of Australians,” she said.
Scope of Ban
Meanwhile, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland revealed last week that the social media ban would apply to TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and X, among others.Other platforms such as YouTube, and messaging apps will not be affected, as it could affect communication with family and friends.
“We are not saying that risks don’t exist on messenger apps or online gaming,” she told Parliament on Nov. 21.
“While users can still be exposed to harmful content by other users, they do not face the same algorithmic curation of content and psychological manipulation to encourage near endless engagement.”
Shadow Communications Minister David Coleman confirmed that the Coalition would be working “in good faith” with the government to finalise the social media ban legislation.
“The Leader of the Opposition committed the Coalition to a social media age limit of 16 back in June,” he said on Nov. 21.
“It should have happened then, but we’re pleased it is finally happening now. This issue is urgent.”
However, there has reportedly been some disquiet within the Coalition on the ban, including concerns raised by Nationals Senator Matt Canavan and Liberal Senator Alex Antic about how young users will be tracked.
The government has suggested social media companies will need to implement “some form of age assurance” to identify account holders in an explanatory memorandum to the bill.
One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson and Greens Senator Hanson Young have both raised concerns about the timeframe of the bill’s introduction.
On Nov. 21, the Senate referred the bill to the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for a report by Nov. 26.
Submissions to the inquiry closed on Nov. 22, only one day after the Bill was introduced into the parliament.
