Australia's under-16 social media ban faces a constitutional challenge in the High Court

3 November 2026

Two days of hearings on a challenge to Australia's social media ban for children have opened in the High Court of Australia.
A digital rights group, the Digital Freedom Project, argues that barring under-sixteens takes away children's right to free political communication, and a separate challenge by the platform Reddit is being heard along with it.
The ban took effect on 10 December 2025 and is part of a wider set of online safety measures.
Ten platforms are covered: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, Snapchat, X, Kick, Threads and Twitch, and each must take reasonable steps to keep anyone under sixteen off its service.
Breaches carry fines of up to 99 million Australian dollars, although no company has been fined since the ban began.
The eSafety Commissioner enforces the law and has opened several investigations into how well the platforms are complying.
WhatsApp, gaming sites such as Roblox and Discord, and educational services such as YouTube Kids and Google Classroom were left out of the ban.
In the first days after it started, one company that owns three of the listed platforms said it had closed about half a million accounts.