Reddit challenges Australia’s under-16 social media ban in High Court

Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project are challenging Australia’s under-16 social media ban in the country’s High Court, with two days of hearings due to begin on Tuesday, the BBC reported on 2 November. The challenges pit arguments about political communication and privacy against the government’s defence of restrictions intended to protect children online.¹²

Political communication at issue

According to the Guardian, the cases centre largely on whether barring under-16s from holding accounts places an impermissible burden on the implied freedom of political communication. Reddit argues that online platforms provide Australians with news and political information, and that the restrictions interfere with younger users’ participation.¹

The Guardian reported that teenagers can still read subreddit content without an account, but cannot contribute posts, leave comments or upvote material. Reddit also disputes that it falls within the legislation’s definition of a social media platform, according to the newspaper.¹

The Digital Freedom Project argues that the ban deprives children of free communication, the BBC reported. According to the Guardian, the group says some members are between 13 and 15. The federal government disputes its standing, arguing that it has not identified any activity of the organisation that the restrictions obstruct.¹²

Government defends protections

The government argues that the law reduces risks to under-16s associated with algorithms, continuously scrolling feeds, repeated notifications and likes. Its submission identifies potential harms involving mental health, sleep and eating disorders. Communications Minister Anika Wells has said the government would not yield to legal threats.¹²

The BBC reported that the ban took effect on 10 December last year and requires ten platforms to take reasonable steps to keep under-16s from accessing their services. According to the Guardian, platforms were required to suspend or deactivate accounts they assessed as belonging to children below that age.¹²

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said more than five million accounts across the ten services had been suspended. The Guardian reported that the federal opposition questioned whether the figures were inflated, while the government declined to publish platform-by-platform totals. The newspaper also reported concerns that teenagers could readily evade the restrictions.¹

According to the BBC, serious or repeated breaches can expose platforms to fines of up to A$99 million. It reported on 2 November that no company had been fined since the restrictions began.²

Different assessments of the cases

The Guardian reported differing assessments from Anne Twomey and Luke Beck. Twomey wrote that Reddit might prevail by demonstrating a gap between the law’s purpose and its effects. Beck expected the challenges to fail, arguing that the reduction in political communication was small and that teenagers had previously contributed relatively little to it. He also identified standing as a difficulty for the Digital Freedom Project.¹

A separate proposal could also affect the outcome’s practical significance. The government’s submission says the digital duty of care bill under consideration in federal parliament would impose requirements on platforms equivalent to those of the social media ban.¹