Twitter (“X”) billionaire and incoming head of the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Elon Musk has slammed Australian Parliament for attempting to censor the internet. Australia this week introduced legislation that would ban teenagers 16 and under from using social media, with steep fines to tech giants who don’t comply. In order to implement the proposed ban, it would require age-verifying measures including biometrics and government-issued digital identification. “Today we're introducing our bill to make 16 years the minimum age for social media,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wrote on Twitter (“X”) Thursday local time. Musk replied: “Seems like a backdoor way to control access to the Internet by all Australians.”.The proposed legislation could impose fines up to nearly CA$45 million for violations is tech giants fail to take “reasonable steps to prevent age-restricted users having accounts.”Meta and TikTok along with X have also denounced the move as well, but social media platforms aren't the only ones pushing back — critics such as Save The Children argue the ban could push children under 16 into unregulated spaces on the internet.However, the bill has bipartisan support and faces little opposition from within parliament. Should it pass, it would go into effect in roughly a year’s time. .Communications Minister Michelle Rowland introduced the amendment to Australia’s Online Safety Act in parliament on Thursday. The government has boasted the legislation has the potential to change how the whole world interacts with social media. “The Albanese Government is introducing world leading legislation to establish 16 as the minimum age for access to social media,” Rowland said in a statement, per CNN.“This reform is about protecting young people and letting parents know we’ve got their backs.”A list of banned sites has not been released, but tentatively sites like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat are banned — but YouTube so far will still be allowed. “The legislation places the onus on social media platforms, not parents or children, to ensure protections are in place,” said Rowland.“Ultimately, this is about supporting a safer and healthier online environment for young Australians.”.Save the Children Australia CEO Mat Tinkler disagrees that the bill would help protect children, and instead argues it could cause more harm and has asked the government to reconsider. “As a parent, I hold the same concerns that many parents do about the potential harms that our children face online,” said Tinkler in a statement. “I welcome the government's efforts to try and keep our kids safer online and drive accountability home to social media giants. But I also trust the experts and the views of children and young people themselves when they are raising serious concerns about this proposed solution.”“We are asking the government to reconsider this legislative approach and instead use the momentum of this moment to hold the social media giants to account, to demand that they embed safety into their platforms rather than adding at as an afterthought, and to work closely with experts and children and young people themselves to make online spaces safer, as opposed to off-limits.”
