A new report from Australia’s eSafety Commissioner shows that the country’s under-16 social media ban has barely dented how many young people actually use restricted platforms, even as account holding has dropped. The follow-up study surveyed 4,121 children aged 10 to 16 along with a parent, building on the Commission’s earlier three-month review of the policy’s impact.
Teens Find Workarounds Instead of Logging Off
At the ban’s launch, 85.9% of Australian teens said they regularly used at least one age-restricted platform. That figure has only edged down to 81.5% since enforcement began. The report attributes this partly to teens accessing platforms without logging into personal accounts, or through relatives’ and friends’ accounts. Snapchat was the only major app to see a notable usage drop, falling from 31.5% to 27.9% of teens over three months, while Reddit and Kick saw upticks, possibly picking up displaced users.
Weak Age Checks Blamed for Continued Access
The report points to inconsistent enforcement as the main driver of continued access. Half of surveyed children said the platform they used simply hadn’t asked them to verify their age, while others said the platform miscalculated their age altogether. Some teens admitted listing themselves as 16 or older, though fears about widespread VPN use to dodge the ban largely haven’t materialized.
The data also found teens have shifted more time toward messaging apps and online gaming rather than reducing screen time overall, with little measurable change in offline activity or wellbeing. The findings suggest that simply restricting access doesn’t reverse the social habits teens have already built online — a lesson that could shape how other countries approach similar bans going forward.