Meta Blocks Over 750,000 Accounts in Australia Under Social Media Age Restrictions
Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has blocked more than 750,000 accounts suspected of belonging to Australian users under the age of 16, according to Reuters on Thursday (13/8/2026).
The move is a form of compliance with rules that have been in force in the country since December 2025 regarding restrictions on social media access for children under 16.
These rules have also been established by the Indonesian government through PP Tunas, which was introduced in March 2025 and took effect through Permenkomdigi Number 9 of 2026 in March 2026. Nevertheless, Australia is recognised as the first country in the world to pioneer such regulations.
Meta recorded that it had deactivated 462,000 Instagram accounts and 294,000 ‘suspicious’ underage Facebook accounts in Australia during the period leading up to the implementation of the rules last December through June. This figure rose significantly compared to January, when Meta had removed 331,000 Instagram accounts and 173,000 Facebook accounts.
The global social media giant took this firm action to comply with applicable regulations, amid the threat of lawsuits from Australia’s internet regulator against a number of platforms deemed deliberately negligent and non-compliant.
Despite Meta’s aggressive ‘clean-up’ efforts, reports from the Australian government and various independent studies have uncovered a startling fact. More than 80% of children under the age of 16 are still actively browsing social media in the first three months since the law was enacted.
The Australian government issued the strict rules on 10 December due to mounting concerns over the negative impact of social media on children’s mental and physical health.
Australia’s government has accused technology giants of deliberately designing lax systems so that the rules would fail. In response, the government is preparing a new bill to double the maximum fine for non-compliance to A$99 million (Rp1.2 trillion).
To tighten screening, Meta is using artificial intelligence (AI) technology to scan for indications of user age based on their online activity.
“We use AI to analyse contextual clues on user profiles that point to an age under 16, such as birthday celebration posts or mentions of school grade level,” Meta management said in a statement on Thursday (13/8/2026).
Meta also confirmed that it has closed loopholes for users who attempt to create new accounts repeatedly after their previous accounts were removed.
As scheduled, representatives from Meta, TikTok, Google (YouTube), and Snap (Snapchat) will be summoned to provide testimony in an Australian parliamentary inquiry into the effectiveness of enforcement of these rules.