How Australian Teenagers Are Circumventing the National Social Media Ban: Methods and Concerns

Australia's pioneering social media ban for users under 16 officially took effect on Wednesday, though teenagers are already discovering numerous methods to circumvent these restrictions.

The groundbreaking legislation has resulted in millions of young users losing access to major platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, YouTube, Snapchat, Reddit, Kick, Twitch, and TikTok. Under this law, platforms are required to remove accounts belonging to users under 16 and prevent new registrations, with potential penalties reaching up to $49.5 million for non-compliance.

Despite these stringent regulations, adolescents have been quickly developing workarounds, according to The Washington Post. These include utilizing new applications, finding alternative login methods, and even accessing their parents' accounts.

Thirteen-year-old Isobel revealed to the BBC that she bypassed the ban in under five minutes. When Snapchat notified her of impending removal unless she could verify being over 16, she simply used her mother's photo to deceive the app's age verification system.

Isobel continues to access Snapchat successfully. While she was removed from TikTok overnight, she can still browse content on the platform. Her younger brother reportedly maintains access to YouTube despite their accounts being officially frozen.

Some users have demonstrated remarkable creativity in bypassing verification protocols. One individual reportedly gained access by uploading a golden retriever photo to the verification system.

Experts caution that teenagers can exploit various loopholes, including virtual private networks (VPNs), fraudulent identification documents, or enlisting parents or older siblings to complete facial verification processes.

"They may attempt to modify their appearance to deceive facial scanning age estimation," explained Lisa Given, an information sciences professor at RMIT University, according to ABC News. "Alternatively, they might have someone over 16, such as a sibling or parent, perform the facial scan for them to bypass age verification."

Across Reddit, teenagers are collaboratively developing strategies to evade the ban. Methods include purchasing adult-looking mesh face masks on Temu, recruiting strangers for age verification, or creating new accounts with falsified birth dates. Several teenagers informed The Washington Post they were sharing adult identification when apps requested age verification.

Some teens are even learning techniques to "age themselves" for photo verification processes.

Jillian from New South Wales shared with ABC News, "My 12-year-old daughter and her friends were identified as 17+ simply by applying fake lashes and makeup. Even without cosmetics, she was identified as 14+. Consequently, these young girls are likely exposed to more inappropriate content than before the ban."

Facial recognition and age verification technologies are proving imperfect. A New South Wales mother reported that her 14-year-old son maintained Snapchat access after altering his age and successfully passing the k-ID selfie verification.

"When I attempted to correct his birth date in his Snapchat account, I discovered it was impossible because date of birth modifications are limited," she told the outlet. "How is this permitted? How did he receive age confirmation as 23 when he's only 14?"

Lisa Given noted that facial scanning technology has an error margin of "one to three years." "This means the system might estimate a 14-year-old as 17 and incorrectly determine they're old enough to maintain an account," she explained.