SYDNEY – Technology suppliers are pushing back against claims that Australia’s historic social media ban for teenagers is failing due to technological limitations, arguing instead that major platforms are simply not properly utilizing existing age verification tools.
The Age Verification Providers Association (AVPA) released findings suggesting that enforcement challenges with Australia’s under-16 social media prohibition stem from poor implementation by platforms rather than inadequate technology capabilities.
“The issue is not capability, it is application,” stated Iain Corby, executive director of AVPA.
The trade group emphasized that early implementation problems highlight the need for stricter expectations and better enforcement, not that age verification systems are fundamentally flawed.
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner is currently examining potential violations by major platforms including Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, Google’s YouTube, TikTok, and Snap regarding the world’s first national ban of this type, which took effect in December.
Companies found in violation could face penalties reaching A$49.5 million (approximately $35 million) per breach. Government officials indicate they are collecting evidence for potential Federal Court proceedings if platforms don’t improve their compliance efforts.
According to the association’s analysis, initial deployment demonstrated that age verification systems can function effectively on a large scale, but social media companies are failing to implement them properly or at crucial moments like account registration.
Representatives from TikTok and Snap refused to provide comments, while Meta and Google did not respond to requests for statements.
These conclusions challenge social media platforms’ claims about insufficient age verification technology, suggesting that continued access by underage users results from how companies choose to deploy available tools rather than technical limitations.
Government data indicates millions of suspected underage accounts have been deleted since the legislation became active.
Nevertheless, the eSafety regulator has identified ongoing problems including inadequate age verification during account creation, allowing multiple verification attempts until users succeed, and continued dependence on user-reported ages.
The AVPA’s analysis concluded that independent testing and early real-world implementation indicated these deficiencies primarily resulted from platform practices rather than technological failures.
The organization identified major effectiveness concerns including excessive dependence on internal age-estimation algorithms that attempt to determine user age through online behavior patterns, and insufficient re-verification of established accounts.
Before implementing the ban, Australia conducted comprehensive testing of AVPA member companies’ verification systems.
