Meta to Block Facebook, Instagram and Threads for Australian Teens by December 10

Meta has announced it will block Australian users under the age of 16 from accessing Instagram, Facebook and Threads by December 10, aligning with Australia’s sweeping new social media ban for teens. The company confirmed on Thursday that it has already begun notifying users it believes to be between 13 and 15 years old, using in-app alerts, emails and text messages to inform them that their accounts will soon be shut down.

Starting December 4, Meta will begin deactivating accounts belonging to underage users and prevent any new sign-ups by teens under 16. The process is expected to be fully completed by December 10  the same date the law goes into effect. Previously, Meta told lawmakers it would only begin removing access once the legislation was active, but the company has now accelerated its timeline.

To comply with the new regulations, Meta said it will use multiple age-assurance technologies and adopt a “data minimisation approach,” collecting only the information necessary when there is reason to doubt a user’s age. Antigone Davis, Meta’s vice president and global head of safety, emphasised that while the company is working to remove all under-16 users by the deadline, “compliance with the law will be an ongoing and multi-layered process.”

Australia’s internet regulator estimates that around 150,000 Facebook users and 350,000 Instagram users in the 13–15 age bracket will be affected, though figures for Threads have not been released. Impacted teens will be given options to update contact information so they can be notified when they turn 16, download their account data, or delete their profiles entirely.

The legislation marks one of the world’s toughest approaches to restricting minors’ access to social media and is being closely monitored by global regulators. The law requires platforms to take “reasonable steps” to prevent under-16s from maintaining accounts, with non-compliant companies facing fines of up to A$49.5 million (US$32 million).