New research examining the early implementation of Australia’s world-first social media age restrictions for under 16s has revealed little change in adolescence use of the platforms.
Published today in the British Medical Journal, the University of Newcastle study found age assurance measures were not consistently experienced, with many young people reporting continued access to platforms using their own accounts, as well as alternative or shared accounts.
The results are an early snapshot, with platform practices and compliance approaches likely to evolve as implementation progresses.
The study followed 408 adolescents aged 12 to 17 before and three months after the introduction of the Social Media Minimum Age Act 2024, which requires identified platforms including Tiktok, X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat, to take reasonable steps to prevent users under 16 from holding accounts.
Researchers found that more than 85 per cent of adolescents under 16 continued to use restricted social media platforms at follow-up, with around two-thirds reporting exposure to age verification processes.
Lead investigator, University of Newcastle public health researcher Dr Courtney Barnes of HMRI’s Population Health Research program, said the findings provided an important early snapshot of how the policy was being experienced in practice.
“In this study, we observed very little change in adolescent social media use in the three months following the introduction of age restrictions, based on self-reported data collected before and after implementation,” Dr Barnes said.
Around two-thirds encountered age verification measures, with self-declared age and photo-based checks the most commonly reported approaches.
“Most adolescents who continued using social media did so with their own accounts, and the most common form of age verification was self-declared age. There was also clear evidence of circumvention — for example, using fake accounts or accounts belonging to friends or family,” Dr Barnes said.
Continued access despite restrictions
- Around 86% of under-16s reported accessing at least one restricted platform in the past week at follow-up
- Most adolescents continued accessing platforms through their own accounts (around 54–68% of users under 16)
- Around two-thirds (66%) of adolescents reported encountering any form of age verification
- The most commonly reported age verification methods were self-declared age (24–39%) and uploading a photo (‘selfie’) (13–27%)
Circumvention behaviour
- Around 15–19% of adolescents reported using a fake account to access platforms
- Between 9% and 29% reported accessing platforms through someone else’s account
- Up to 11% reported using private browser modes to bypass restrictions
Changes in social media use
- Daily social media use trends varied by age: Usage remained stable among 12–13 year olds, declined among 14–15 year olds (78% to 69%), and increased among those aged over 16 (80% to 89%) over the study period.
- Time spent on social media per day showed a similar pattern: It stayed steady for 12–13 year olds and those over 16, but decreased among 14–15 year olds (from 3.40 to 3.13 on the scale).
- There was no substantive change in daily use or time spent on social media.
In response to growing concerns about the potential harm of social media use to adolescent health and wellbeing, governments internationally are considering or implementing age-based restrictions.
“This is one of the first evaluations of its kind, which is important because other countries are watching Australia closely. It provides early evidence of how these restrictions are functioning,” Dr Barnes said.
Co-investigator, University of Newcastle behavioural scientist Professor Luke Wolfenden, said it was important to interpret the findings in the context of early implementation, as there was an expectation that both platform practices and compliance mechanisms would continue to evolve over time.
“Our study focuses on access and use rather than broader outcomes, but it contributes to a growing body of evidence suggesting that patterns of social media use are shaped by a range of behavioural and environmental factors,” Professor Wolfenden said.
“The findings suggest that where adolescents are still able to access platforms, patterns of use are unlikely to differ substantially, as the underlying access to these services appears largely unchanged.
“The results point to the importance of how age assurance is operationalised in practice, as the effectiveness of any restriction is likely to depend on the robustness and consistency of these measures.”
The research team acknowledges the full impacts of the legislation may take years to emerge and that longer-term evaluation will be critical.
“This study provides early evidence on how the policy is functioning in practice, and contributes to ongoing efforts to understand how such measures may influence adolescent behaviour over time,” Professor Wolfenden said.
“Our main recommendation is for more rigorous, long-term evaluations. It takes time for policy implementation to stabilise and for impacts — particularly on wellbeing — to emerge.”
Assessing the early effects of Australia’s ‘Social Media Minimum Age Act’ on adolescent social media use is published in the British Medical Journal.
HMRI is a partnership between the University of Newcastle, Hunter New England Health and the community.
