Australia Passes World-First Social Media Ban for Under-16s

Australia passed the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 — the world's first legislation banning children under 16 from social media platforms. Platforms face fines of AU$50 million for systemic failures. Implementation requires age verification infrastructure — critics warned this creates nationwide identity-linked internet access records and sets a global precedent for government-controlled social media access based on identity verification.

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