Snapchat WILL be banned for teens as Australia announces world first age limit social media reforms

Snapchat will be involved in sweeping social media reforms to curb its use by teenagers, following fears that its MMS app could escape exemption from the reforms due to a loophole in the law.

New legislation to be announced by the Albanian government on Thursday will see the popular platform forced to follow age limit reforms.

It comes after Communications Minister Michelle Rowland previously raised concerns that Snapchat could be exempt from age limit reforms by defining itself as a “messaging service” more akin to text messaging platforms, rather than “social media.” ‘platforms such as Instagram.

“Snapchat, under the Online Safety Act, depending on how it’s defined, could fall within the definition of a messaging service… We’re very willing to go through a criteria process and see how it stacks up against that,” she said. they Last week 2GB.

The minister will announce the cabinet’s new reforms during the parliamentary meeting on Thursday.

“The Albanian government is introducing world-leading legislation to set 16 as the minimum age for social media access,” Ms Rowland said. news.com.au.

“This legislation imposes responsibility [of safety and mental health of young Australians] on social media platforms, not at parents or children, to ensure protection is in place.

“Ultimately, this is about supporting a safer and healthier online environment for young Australians.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the proposed social media ban in September, with the aim of ‘getting our kids off their devices and onto the football fields’

The move will be welcomed by Queensland Catholic Secondary Principals Association chief executive Dan McMahon, who was “flabbergasted” at the thought of Snapchat finding a loophole.

“Of all the social media platforms I deal with… Snapchat is one of the most common,” he told A Current Affair last week.

‘Not everyone on Snapchat is an online bully, but in my experience every online bully uses Snapchat.

“It’s just such a great tool for weaponizing harm.”

However, many are still concerned that many Australian teenagers will find ways around the new regulations.

The world’s first reforms will result in costly penalties of up to $50 million for companies’ violations of the new laws and violations of industry codes and standards.

It will also force regulated entities to make reasonable efforts to prevent persons under the age of 16 from creating accounts.

“This reform is about protecting young people and letting parents know we have their backs,” Ms Rowland said.

“Social media has a social responsibility for the safety and mental health of young Australians.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the legislative reforms would create a ‘safer and healthier’ online environment for teenagers

The Minister of Communications will also be able to exclude certain services from the definition, including messaging platforms, online games and services designed to support the health and education of users.

It will also include strict privacy provisions, including requiring platforms to find and destroy previously collected information.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese first announced age limit reforms in September.

His aim is to ‘get our kids off their devices and onto the football pitches or the netball courts so they connect with real people who have real experiences’.

“And we know that social media causes social harm,” Albanese said at the time.

“We want to make sure we get it right, but we also want to make sure we take action. That’s why we said we will introduce legislation before the end of this year.”

Mr Albanese said “enough” was “enough” and that his government would act to prevent the damage caused by social media companies and platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat.

‘We know that technology moves quickly. No government will be able to protect every child from every threat, but we must do everything we can.

‘Parents are very concerned about this. We know they work without a map. No generation has faced this challenge before.”