New Zealand Proposes Social Media Ban For Under-16s With Mandatory Age Verification
New Zealand proposes age restrictions on social media for under-16s.
The New Zealand government is set to introduce legislation that would ban children under the age of 16 from using social media platforms, placing greater responsibility on technology companies to enforce age restrictions. The proposed Online Safety Bill is aimed at limiting young people's exposure to harmful online content, addictive technologies and other risks associated with social media use.
The government has been examining restrictions on children's social media access for more than a year, following Australia's introduction of similar legislation in December. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the government could not ignore the potential harm social media was causing among children and teenagers. He cited figures indicating that one in three children aged 13 to 17 spend at least five hours a day on social media.
Under the proposed legislation, major platforms including Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and Facebook would be required to take reasonable measures to establish whether users are at least 16 years old. Companies could use existing account information, facial age estimation, digital identification services and formal identification documents as part of the verification process. Platforms would also have to assess risks linked to their services and report on measures taken to reduce those risks.
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The legislation would place legal obligations directly on social media companies rather than children or their families. Education Minister Erica Stanford said there would be no penalties for children, parents or caregivers under the proposed framework. Companies that fail to meet the requirements could face substantial financial penalties, with fines of up to 10 percent of their global revenue proposed for serious non-compliance.
However, the legislation faces uncertainty because New Zealand's coalition partners have expressed opposition to the proposal. The libertarian ACT party has argued that the restrictions would not work effectively and could be easily bypassed by teenagers, while NZ First has also indicated that it cannot support the measure. The parties have questioned the effectiveness of Australia's approach, making parliamentary approval less certain.
Australia introduced a similar ban last year covering platforms including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, with the policy intended to protect children from online bullying and potentially harmful recommendation systems. However, a peer-reviewed study by Australia-based researchers published in June found limited evidence that teenagers had significantly reduced their social media use as a result of the restrictions. New Zealand's proposed law will therefore face scrutiny over both its enforcement mechanisms and its effectiveness in protecting young users.
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