Australia is trying to enforce the first teen social media ban. Governments worldwide are watching.

In this photo illustration, iPhone screens display various social media apps on the screens on February 9, 2025 in Bath, England. Anna Barclay | Getty Images News | Getty Images Australia on Wednesday became the first country to formally bar users under the age of 16 from accessing major social media platforms, a move expected to be closely monitored by global tech companies and policymakers around the world. Canberra’s ban, which came into effect from midnight local time, targets 10 major services, including Alphabet ‘s YouTube, Meta’ s Instagram, ByteDance’s TikTok, Reddit , Snapchat and Elon Musk’s X. The controversial rule requires these platforms to take “reasonable steps” to prevent underage access, using age-verification methods such as inference from online activity, facial estimation via selfies, uploaded IDs, or linked bank details. All targeted platforms had agreed to comply with the policy to some extent. Elon Musk’s X had been one of the last holdouts, but signaled on Wednesday that it would comply.  The policy means millions of Australian children are expected to have lost access to their social accounts.  However, the impact of the policy could be even wider, as it will set a benchmark for other governments considering teen
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