Three months after the enforcement of the SNS ban law, it has been found that approximately 86% of those under 16 continue to use social media.

A law that came into effect in Australia on December 10, 2025, requires the operators of social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube to take reasonable measures to prevent minors under 16 from creating or maintaining accounts on these platforms. However, a study published in the medical journal 'The BMJ' revealed that even three months after the law's implementation, approximately 86% of minors under 16 were still using these social media platforms.

Assessing the early effects of Australia's 'Social Media Minimum Age Act' on adolescent social media use | The BMJ
https://www.bmj.com/content/393/bmj-2026-363695

Australia's social media age restrictions show limited early impact, new research finds | The University of Newcastle, Australia
https://www.newcastle.edu.au/news/2026/06/australias-social-media-age-restrictions-show-limited-early-impact-new-research-finds

Four in five under-16s in Australia using social media despite ban, study shows | Social media | The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/jun/24/australia-under-16-social-media-ban-no-substantial-effects-study

In Australia, the Online Safety Amendment Act of 2024 (SNS Minimum Age Act) was enacted in 2024 and came into effect on December 10, 2025. The SNS Minimum Age Act does not punish individuals under the age of 16, but rather requires the operators of the target social media platforms to take reasonable measures to prevent users under the age of 16 from creating or maintaining accounts. Targeted platforms include Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, X, and YouTube.

Australia launches world's first 'SNS ban for those under 16,' targeting TikTok, X, Instagram, YouTube, and others - GIGAZINE

One month after the law came into effect, Australia's online safety regulator, the eSafety Commissioner, announced that 'approximately 4.7 million teenage accounts have been suspended on the targeted social media platforms.'

Australia's social media ban law suspends 4.7 million teen accounts in the first month - GIGAZINE

However, subsequent research by the Molly Rose Foundation has revealed that young people under the age of 16 continue to use social media.

Six out of ten minors continue to use social media in Australia, where it has been banned - GIGAZINE

In this context, a research team led by Courtney Burns, a public health researcher at Newcastle University, investigated SNS usage before and after the implementation of the Minimum Age for SNS Act and found that young people under the age of 16 continued to use the SNS in question.

The research team conducted a survey of 408 young Australians aged 12-17, both immediately before the law went into effect and three months after its implementation. Participants were asked questions such as whether they had used social media daily in the past seven days, their average daily usage time, how they accessed social media, whether they had ever been asked to verify their age on a platform, and whether they had tried to circumvent age restrictions.

As a result, it was found that even three months after the law came into effect, approximately 86% of those under the age of 16 were still using the regulated social media platforms.

According to the research team, approximately two-thirds of those under 16 had experienced some form of age verification. The methods of age verification varied by age group, with 24-39% reporting their age and 13-27% uploading a selfie. Only 5% of 12-13 year olds and 11% of 14-15 year olds were asked to submit a photo of an official ID.

In Australia, even before the Minimum Age Act for Social Media was enacted, there was a debate about whether age verification technologies such as 'facial scanning' could be used to restrict social media use by those under 16.

Facial scan age verification for 'prohibiting SNS use by those under 16' is not working properly - GIGAZINE

Furthermore, methods of accessing social media differed by age group, with 54-68% using their own accounts, 15-19% using fake accounts, 9-29% using someone else's account, up to 11% using private browsing mode, and about 3% using a VPN.

The changes varied by age group. Looking at daily SNS usage rates, there was no significant change among 12-13 year olds, but it decreased from 78% to 69% among 14-15 year olds. On the other hand, it increased from 80% to 89% among those over 16, and the average daily usage time remained relatively stable among 12-13 year olds and those over 16, while it decreased among 14-15 year olds.

Luke Wolfenden, a behavioral scientist who worked with Burns on the research, points out that 'the effectiveness of age restrictions is likely to depend on how age verification is actually implemented.'

Furthermore, a policy to increase the fines for social media platforms that fail to take sufficient measures under the SNS Minimum Age Law was announced on June 28, 2026.

Australian government doubles penalties for violating social media ban, with maximum fines reaching 11 billion yen - GIGAZINE

The research team explained that this study uses initial data from three months after the law came into effect, and that it will take time for the law to have an impact. They stated, 'At least in the short term, we cannot say that we have significantly reduced usage among teenagers who are already using the target social media platforms.'