Australian PM Reduces Concerns Regarding Privacy Along With Prohibition Of Social Media For Children
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Monday social media companies would be required to destroy personal data used to verify user age, as part of what the government says is banning children under 16 from using the service.
Australia plans to pilot an age verification system that could include biometrics or government identification to enforce social media age limits, some of the strictest controls imposed by any country to date.
"There will be very strong and strict privacy requirements to protect people's personal information, including the obligation to destroy the information provided after age is verified," PM Albanese told parliament on Monday.
The law will have an impact on Elon Musk's Meta Platforms, Instagram and Facebookm TikTok and X by Elon Musk and Snapchat.
The plan has been criticized by several figures including Musk, who said on Friday the law was an attempt to control access to the internet for all Australians.
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The proposal is the highest age limit set by any country, and will not have exceptions for parental consent and no exceptions for pre-existing accounts.
Social media platforms will face fines of up to US$32 million if they do not comply with the law.
The Australian government said it was targeting to pass the bill into law by the end of parliament on Thursday, speeding up the process through the upper and lower house.