Australia’s Communications Minister Anika Wells has confirmed that five investigations are underway into potential breaches of the country’s under-16 social media ban, as the government moves to double the maximum penalties for social media companies to $109 million under proposed digital duty-of-care reforms.
Wells said in a television interview that no social media companies have been fined yet and that the eSafety Commissioner has the five investigations active currently. She said both the commissioner and Australian parents needed stronger laws to be passed to give the regulator more effective tools to impose penalties on large technology companies.
She urged the opposition Coalition and the Greens to stop delaying and pass legislation that would give the eSafety Commissioner additional powers, including a stronger ability to take platforms to the Federal Court.
The under-16 ban
Australia enacted the world’s first comprehensive social media ban for children under 16, and the Australian government has been pressing for compliance since, with the law taking effect at the start of 2026. The legislation requires platforms to verify users’ ages and prevent those under 16 from creating accounts. Platforms that fail to comply face financial penalties from the eSafety Commissioner.
The five open social media investigations suggest the commissioner has found cause to examine potential non-compliance at five different platforms or instances. Whether those investigations result in enforcement actions depends on what they find and whether the platforms have a compliance defense available.
The penalty doubling
The proposed increase in maximum penalties to $109 million is part of a broader digital duty-of-care framework the government is seeking to pass. The increase is intended to make the potential financial consequences of non-compliance meaningful for large technology companies, whose revenues dwarf what current penalties could impose.
Wells’s comment about large technology companies taking the mickey reflects Australian government frustration that platforms have not moved quickly enough to comply and that the current penalty structure does not create sufficient deterrent.
The political dynamic
Wells directing her criticism at the Coalition and the Greens signals that the duty-of-care legislation has not moved through parliament at the pace the government wanted. In the Australian system, legislation can be delayed in the Senate if crossbench or opposition senators vote against it or abstain. Wells’s framing suggests the legislation has stalled there.
The eSafety Commissioner has the authority to investigate breaches and impose penalties under the current law. The government‘s push for expanded powers suggests it believes the current framework is insufficient to compel compliance from the largest global platforms.
