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Snapchat has begun asking children and teenagers in Australia to verify their ages, including with software owned by the country’s banks, according to a company spokesperson. The move on Monday comes as Australia prepares to enforce a world-first social media ban for children under the age of 16 starting on December 10. Recommended Stories list of 4 items list 1 of 4 Meta sets date to remove Australians under 16 from Instagram, Facebook list 2 of 4 US Treasury’s Bessent says China has approved TikTok transfer deal list 3 of 4 Australia adds Reddit, Kick to social media ban for children under 16 list 4 of 4 Meta prevails in existential challenge as court rules it’s not a monopoly end of list The law, which threatens social media platforms with a fine of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars ($31.95m) for noncompliance, is one of the world’s toughest regulations targeting Big Tech. In addition to Snapchat, the ban currently applies to YouTube, X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, Twitch and Kick. In a statement on Saturday, Snapchat said users will be able to verify their age through the ConnectID application, which links to their bank accounts, or by using software owned

Our systems have detected unusual traffic from your computer network. Please try your request again later. Why did this happen? IP address: 114.129.128.174Time: 2025-11-24T11:38:02ZURL: https://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DXjQd4iURPlA

Malik Blade is officially back in action after missing over a year due to a torn ACL. The NXT star made his return at a live event on Friday night, November 21, in Bartow, Florida, where he competed in his first match since October 2024. Blade faced Aigle Blanc in singles action at the house show, ultimately coming up short, but the real victory was simply stepping back into the ring. His last match before the injury took place during a taping of NXT Level Up on October 15, 2024. The torn ACL sidelined Blade for more than 12 months, but he took to social media following his return with a message of celebration. Reacting to news of his match, Blade posted, “We are so back !” Despite the loss to Blanc, Blade’s return marks an important step forward as he begins his climb back into the NXT spotlight. It’s currently unclear when he’ll appear next on television, but returning to in-ring competition is a strong sign that he’s fully cleared and ready to go. Are you excited to see Malik Blade back in NXT? What kind of direction should he take now that he’s returned? Drop your thoughts in

By Jeff Horwitz (Reuters) -Meta shut down internal research into the mental health effects of Facebook and Instagram after finding causal evidence that its products harmed users’ mental health, according to unredacted filings in a class action by U.S. school districts against Meta and other social media platforms. In a 2020 research project code-named “Project Mercury,” Meta scientists worked with survey firm Nielsen to gauge the effect of “deactivating” Facebook and Instagram, according to Meta documents obtained via discovery. To the company’s disappointment, “people who stopped using Facebook for a week reported lower feelings of depression, anxiety, loneliness and social comparison,” internal documents said. Rather than publishing those findings or pursuing additional research, the filing states, Meta called off further work and internally declared that the negative study findings were tainted by the “existing media narrative” around the company. Privately, however, staff assured Nick Clegg, Meta’s then-head of global public policy, that the conclusions of the research were valid. “The Nielsen study does show causal impact on social comparison,” (unhappy face emoji), an unnamed staff researcher allegedly wrote. Another staffer worried that keeping quiet about negative findings would be akin to the tobacco industry “doing research and knowing cigs were

Snapchat users are reporting issues logging in on October 21, 2025. The outage graph on DownDetector reflects a rise in reports beginning at ...

... Snapchat that must ensure under-16s cannot open accounts and that existing ones are closed from 10 December. Tap the link in @BBCNews's bio to ...

Getty Images Twitch is the latest platform to be included in Australia's teen social media ban Twitch, a streaming platform popular with gamers, has been added to Australia's teen social media ban which starts next month. It joins other platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok and Snapchat that must ensure under-16s cannot open accounts and existing ones are closed from 10 December. Australia's internet regulator overseeing the ban said Twitch - owned by Amazon -has been included as its main purpose was "online social interaction" where users were encouraged to chat to each other about posted content. A Twitch spokesperson said Australians under 16 will not be able to open a Twitch account from 10 December, and from 9 January, existing under-16s accounts will be deactivated. On her reasons why Twitch had been included, eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said it was "a platform most commonly used for livestreaming or posting content that enables users, including Australian children, to interact with others in relation to the content posted". No more platforms are expected to be added to the ban before the start date next month, Ms Inman Grant said. The government has previously said the ban is aimed at

Last Updated: November 21, 2025, 11:31 IST Starting 10 December, children under 16 will be removed from major social media platforms, as Australia becomes the first country to impose a blanket prohibition of this scale From 10 December, children under 16 will no longer be allowed to hold accounts on major social media platforms. (AI Generated) Australia is days away from implementing one of the world’s most far-reaching attempts to keep young teenagers off social media. From 10 December, children under 16 will no longer be allowed to hold accounts on major platforms, making Australia the first country to introduce a blanket prohibition on teen social media access at this scale. The move has been years in the making, shaped by parliamentary inquiries, testimony from families affected by online abuse and a rising political demand for stronger protections for children online. As governments worldwide watch closely, the immediate question is how the ban will actually operate and what changes platforms, users, and regulators will face once it takes effect. Recommended Stories The Australian government says the ban aims to reduce the “pressures and risks" linked to design features that keep users glued to screens and to protect children from content

Extra Police Presence, For Otherwise ‘Average’ Day By Darren Marcy Police and school officials continue to investigate a weekend threat at Randolph Union High School that saw extra security at the school Monday. RUHS Principal Lisa Floyd said Monday was outwardly a pretty normal day at the school, but behind the scenes the investigation was continuing. In a communication to families Monday, Floyd said swift action removed any possible threat. You must be an online subscriber to view this story. Please subscribe or buy this week's issue here or login below. The full version of this story will be available to all readers after 1 week. Full versions of news stories from the current week are available to online subscribers only. Access to full versions of news stories from issues older than 1 week are available to all readers for free in our archive of all issues.

Mendocino Court released a redacted 33-page search warrant Wednesday. The teenager whose interview with Ukiah police led to the arrest of Ukiah High School teacher Matthew LaFever on November 3 was a student in his journalism class, according to a search warrant submitted by Detective Zhonghao Chen and approved by Superior Court Judge Patrick Pekin at 6:54 p.m. Oct. 16, 2025. LaFever was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of knowingly annoying and/or molesting a minor. Ukiah police also said they collected evidence suggesting LaFever was reaching out to other minors in Mendocino and Sonoma counties using various social media platforms. LaFever has not responded to repeated attempts by Mendo Local to contact him. Dan Dougherty, communications and community engagement officer at the Ukiah Unified School District, said LaFever was working part-time and teaching three classes: work experience, journalism and advanced journalism. The 33-page search warrant was filed in Superior Court this week and released in redacted form on Wednesday. Mendo Local reviewed the warrant at the Ukiah courthouse. According to the warrant, the teenager told officers she created a Snapchat account under an alias and was added by LaFever, whose phone number she had saved in her contacts. During their