Reddit files High Court challenge to Australia’s social media age restrictions

Australia’s government says it “stands firm” after U.S. platform Reddit filed a challenge to the under-16 social media ban in the country’s High Court.

Reddit’s court filing alleges the ban infringes Australia’s implied freedom of political communication as the ban prohibits “all Australians under the age of 16 from engaging in any political communication” on social media platforms that require an age-verified account. The filing can be read here.

A spokesperson from the Albanese government said, “We will stand firm to protect young Australians from experiencing harm on social media,” in response to the challenge. “The matter is before the courts so it is not appropriate to comment further,” the spokesperson added.

Reddit is also challenging whether it should fall under the social media platform ban, arguing that it is a forum aimed at adults without the features typical of social media. Reddit has complied with regulations, adding age restrictions on its platform a day before the ban took effect. Biometrics firm Persona is Reddit’s age verification technology provider.

In the court filing, Reddit argues it “facilitates knowledge sharing from one user to other users” and that its “significant purpose” is not to enable user interactions because of other users “as a person.” Most Reddit users’ identities are unknown, it adds.

In a Reddit post uploaded today, a member of its Public Policy team, u/LastBlueJay wrote: “While we agree with the importance of protecting people under 16, this law has the unfortunate effect of forcing intrusive and potentially insecure verification processes on adults as well as minors, isolating teens from the ability to engage in age-appropriate community experiences (including political discussions), and creating an illogical patchwork of which platforms are included and which aren’t.”

It says its case is “not an attempt to avoid compliance” and that it is not trying to retain young users for business reasons. “Simply put, users under 16 are not a substantial market segment for Reddit and we don’t intend them to be,” the post says, which also highlights California’s Digital Age Assurance Act as a “more targeted, privacy-preserving” measure to protect young people online in place of a blanket ban.

The social media ban took effect on Thursday and prevents Australians under age 16 from using platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, Snapchat, Twitch and YouTube. Exempted platforms include Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Steam, Discord, LinkedIn and YouTube Kids.

Reddit users have expressed confusion how age assurance will be implemented and enforced on the platform, taking to the site to voice their alarm and the lack of information. Reddit’s High Court challenge is separate to one filed by New South Wales Libertarian MP John Ruddick, which argues the law is unconstitutional for its effect on the implied freedom of political communication.

Writing in The Guardian, constitutional law professor Luke Beck said that a law that reduces the overall volume of political communication in Australia is invalid unless it is proportionate to a legitimate purpose. “[But] the social media account ban only slightly reduces the overall volume of political communication in Australia,” the Monash University academic believes, adding that the ban does not forbid teenagers from using the internet or having online group chats.

Article Topics

age verification  |  Australia  |  Australia age verification  |  biometric age estimation  |  biometrics  |  legislation  |  Reddit  |  social media