Meta Removes Young Australian Users From Instagram and Facebook in Landmark Safety Push
Sydney,Australia โ- December 4,2025 โข- Meta has begun removing children and teenagers under the age of 16 from its platforms,Instagramโข and Facebook,in Australia,marking a significant escalation โขin efforts to protect young users online. the move, initiatedโข this week, is a responseโ to increasingโข pressure from regulators and child safety advocates concerned about the potential harms of social mediaโ on developing minds.
The rollout follows Meta’s global โpolicy update announced in April 2024, requiring age verification for users accessing โits platforms. Australiaโข is among the first countries to see widespread implementation of the policy, โฃimpacting an estimated hundreds of thousands of young Australians. Users who โคare unable to verify their age as โ16 or โคolderโข will have their accounts disabled, and will be directed to resources designed โขto support their online safety. The company states that โit โฃis indeed utilizing a combination of technologies, including age-appropriate design principles and โparental controls, to enforce the changes.
Thisโฃ action โarrives amid growing โฃscrutiny ofโค social media’s impactโ onโ youth mental health, body image, and exposure โto harmful content. Concerns have been amplified by research linking โฃincreased social media use to higher rates of anxiety, depression, andโ cyberbullying among adolescents. Australian regulators haveโค been particularly vocal, pushing for stronger safeguards and greater accountability from tech companies. โ
Meta’s implementation involves a third-party age verification service, Yoti, to assess user ages. While the company โขemphasizes its commitment to privacy, the use of age verification technology has raised concerns โขamong privacy advocates regarding data security and potential misuse. The Australian Information Commissioner’s โOffice is monitoring the rollout to ensure compliance โขwith privacy laws.
The company plans to continue refining itsโ age verification methods and expanding the rolloutโ to other regions in the coming months. This move โฃsignals a broader industry shift towards prioritizing child safety, though questions remain โขabout the effectiveness of โขage verification and the long-term impact on young peopel’s โaccess โขto online communities.
