US billionaire Elon Musk, owner of the social media platform X, has openly criticised Australia’s proposed legislation aimed at restricting social media access for children under the age of 16. The controversial bill, introduced to parliament on Thursday by Australia’s centre-left government, seeks to enforce strict age-verification measures to uphold the age cut-off. It also proposes fines of up to A$49.5 million ($32 million) for social media companies found in systemic violation of the law.
Elon Musk, who claims to be the champion of free speech, while responding to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s post said, “Seems like a backdoor way to control access to the Internet by all Australians.”
Here’s Albanese’s post:
TODAY: We’re introducing our bill to make 16 years the minimum age for social media.
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) November 20, 2024
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Australia Leading The Front
The proposed law represents one of the most stringent regulations on social media usage implemented by any country to date. If passed, it would make Australia a pioneer in attempting to tackle the challenges of youth exposure to social media platforms. However, the bill has sparked debates about the practicality of enforcing age verification, the implications for privacy, and the potential impact on tech companies operating within the country.
Several nations have pledged to restrict children’s access to social media through new laws, but Australia’s proposed policy stands out for its strictness. Unlike other countries, it offers no exceptions for parental consent or pre-existing accounts. For example, France proposed a social media ban for users under 15 last year but included provisions for parental approval. In the US, longstanding regulations require tech companies to obtain parental consent before collecting data from children under 13.
Elon Musk has previously clashed with Australia’s centre-left Labor government over its social media policies. He labelled them “fascists” in response to their misinformation law. Earlier this year, X took legal action against an Australian cyber regulator, challenging an order to remove posts related to a bishop’s stabbing in Sydney. The incident led Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to refer to Musk as an “arrogant billionaire.”
