Social Media Age Restrictions – Part 2: How to prepare, are any platforms safe, what to do when crisis hits

Less than two weeks to go before the Australian social media ban (or call it “delay”) comes into effect on December 10, 2025. This is both a relief to many parents, mainly those whose children or teens aren’t using social media much or at all yet, and a source of worry. Parents of under-16s who have been using social media are concerned that the change will have a big impact or even cause a crisis for their child or teen.

Note: Children and teens who have created popular social media channels or gained influencer status and are earning money through social media are affected in a big way, of course, but they’re not the majority. Some of them have switched to joint accounts with their parents to be able to continue their economic ventures.

Questions I get asked by parents:

• "Are non-age restricted apps and platforms safe?"

  • Not necessarily. Kids can be cyberbullied on Kids Messenger or see harmful content on YouTube (without being logged into an account), fall in love with an AI chatbot or be groomed by a paedophile on a gaming platform like Roblox.

  • Parents are still the most important guides for teaching their children how to navigate the online world safely, no matter what platform they’re using. This is one of the things I help parents with. Please check out my posts on AI Chatbots for example.
    

• "(How) Will under-16s be stopped to find a way around the ban? "

  • They won’t. It’s the Social Media companies’ responsibility to ensure that under-16s can’t access or create accounts. There is no penalty for children or their parents if they use social media under the age of 16.

  • Kids could use VPN (a connection that hides or changes the country a person is accessing the internet from), but that defies a lot of the location-related benefits of social media. It might also be detected that while the login is from a different country, the user’s activity is linked to Australia/Australian connections.

  • They could also create accounts with fake ages ahead of the ban, however again: Social Media companies are expected to detect many of those accounts based on their “under 16”-type interests, posts, interactions and behaviour etc. (this method is called age inference). Also, this would mean not posting any pictures of themselves or their friends.

• "I fear this will create a lot of conflict with my teen. How do I prepare and handle it?"

  • The most important preparation is having open, empathic chats with your child now. Be curious about which platforms they’re using for what and what their concerns are. What will they miss most? What won’t they miss?

  • Bite your tongue and show understanding (even if you don’t agree or some of their worries might seem ridiculous to you). Don’t have a rigid stance like “this is for your own good” as that will shut down the conversation. Validate their feelings and be supportive. There ARE a lot of great aspects of social media for young people. Imagine you’d lose YOUR social media access!

  • Together, think about what alternatives there might be for them to connect with their friends, gather creative inspiration for their projects, share their voice with like-minded people, or whatever they’re currently doing on socials. Maybe swapping phone numbers or handles on non-banned platforms, setting up group chats somewhere stable, joining their favourite communities on different platforms or the like could be a feasible way forward.

  • Help them download and save their data from the platforms before the ban comes into effect! Usually, this function is part of the app settings and called data “download”, “checkout”, or “export”. It includes things like photos and videos, messages and comments, friend lists and interactions, etc. The platforms might or might not save or make available this information once an account is blocked, and that might be devastating for a teen who has spent a huge amount of time building it.

  • It's a good idea to encourage them to check out the information for young people on how to prepare on eSafety as well as Headspace, the Kids Helpline and ReachOut.

  • The key is that they feel supported by you! You don't have to have all the answers. You’re their trusted partner to work through this change - together. This is new territory for everyone, because it's the first law of its kind, but many countries are watching or following.

    

• "What alternatives to social media are available?"
  

  • Many communities that our children/teens are part of have other online or offline presences, such as websites, forums, chat groups, clubs, etc.

  • I also believe that new networks, platforms and ways of connecting will develop that are less damaging (but more engaging for teens that some of the existing “kid-friendly versions”).

  • Importantly: Real life connections like talking on the phone, messaging, hanging out together, doing sports or activities together are still available!

I hope this information has been useful on your way to preparing yourself and your family for the upcoming changes. Please send through any other questions you might have!

If you’re unsure of where to start the conversation with your child or teen, or if you feel concerned about their device use or experience non-screen related challenges, please feel free to give me a call - I’m always happy to help.

Till next time!

Much love,

Anke x