Snapchat blocks 415k underage accounts amid Australia ban – RTE

Updated / Monday, 2 Feb 2026 10:24 Platforms including Snapchat, Meta, TikTok and YouTube must stop underage users from holding accounts under the legislation, which came into effect on 10 December Snapchat has blocked 415,000 accounts under Australia’s social media ban for under-16s, the company has said, but warned some youngsters may be bypassing age verification technology. The platform urged the Australian authorities to oblige app stores to check users’ ages as an “additional safeguard” for the world-first crackdown. Platforms including Snapchat, Meta, TikTok and YouTube must stop underage users from holding accounts under the legislation, which came into effect on 10 December. Companies face fines of Aus$49.5 million (€28.6m) if they fail to take “reasonable steps” to comply. Australia’s eSafety online regulator reported last month that tech giants had already blocked 4.7 million accounts, delivering “significant outcomes”. As of the end of January, Snapchat said it had blocked or disabled 415,000 Snapchat accounts in Australia belonging to under-16s. “We continue to lock more accounts daily,” it said in an online statement. But the law leaves “significant gaps”, Snapchat said, arguing that age estimation technology was only accurate to within two to three years. “In practice, this means some young
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