Meta says it has taken down 756,000 Australian teen accounts as ban enforcement looms
Australian government figures and multiple independent studies have shown more than eight in 10 under-16s were still on social media in the ban’s first three months
Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, announced on Thursday that it had taken down over 750,000 accounts suspected of belonging to Australian teens aged under 16 since the introduction of a world-first ban on teen accounts, stretching from just before the ban went live in December to June. The company deactivated 462,000 suspect Instagram accounts and 294,000 suspect Facebook accounts, up from 331,000 Instagram accounts and 173,000 Facebook accounts removed by January.
The world's largest social media company has stated its intent to comply with the law despite vocally opposing it, as Australia's internet regulator considers an enforcement lawsuit against platforms, including Meta-owned platforms, for failing to take sufficient steps to comply. Despite Australian government figures and independent studies showing that over eight in 10 under-16s remained on social media during the ban's first three months, Meta emphasized that enforcement efforts continue, with the numbers expected to grow further.
The company is using AI to analyze user profiles for "contextual clues" and remove the option for users to attempt setting up accounts if their previous account was deleted.
Written by urgent.news from The Hindu - Sci-Tech's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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