Social media crackdown in Australia. The Parliament in Canberra has approved a special bill that bans social media for teenagers under 16. This is one of the strictest measures in the world, designed to "protect" teenagers from "potential harm".

The measure should affect the most popular sites such as Facebook, Instagram, X or TikTok, and imposes on the digital platforms themselves and not on parents the obligation to adopt measures to prevent minors from opening profiles, while at the same time providing for very high fines, up to over 30 million dollars, for those technology companies that do not comply.

Platforms such as WhatsApp and YouTube will be exempt. However, the government will provide the exact list of banned sites once the law is published. The measure, approved in the Senate with 34 votes in favor and 18 against, must make a final step in the House of Representatives, where approval is a given given the government's large majority.

The ban will not take effect for at least 12 months, but some are already expressing some doubts about how it will work and its possible impact on privacy. Some researchers have warned that the restrictions could be easily circumvented with tools such as a VPN, which can mask a user's location. "We respect the laws established by the Australian Parliament but are concerned about the process that led to such a rapid approval of the law without adequately considering the evidence, namely what the industry has already put in place to ensure age-appropriate experiences, as well as the opinions of the youngest," said a spokesperson for Meta. Among the critics is also Elon Musk.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was clear when introducing the bill to the House last week: “This is a global problem and we want young people to essentially live their childhood.” A YouGov poll this month showed 77% of Australians supported the ban for under-16s.

Australia becomes the first state in the world to decide at government level to stop the use of social media for those under 16. But the issue is open and, in part, already addressed at political level, in many other countries: while in the United States, from New York to Florida, there are several restrictions on their use for minors, in Spain the government presented a bill in June to prohibit access to them for minors under 16. Just as France is doing. China has already intervened in 2021, requiring identification from the networks involved via an identity document. Furthermore, minors under 14 cannot spend more than 40 minutes a day on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, and the online gaming time for children and adolescents is limited.

(Online Union)

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