Report from New York Times
In Brief – Twitch, a live-streaming platform that emerged primarily with video-game related content but now features a wide range of material, has been added to the list of digital platforms that must implement age verification and block Australian users under age 16 from having accounts. The social media age threshold, which comes into effect on December 10, applies to platforms when their “sole or a significant purpose is to enable online social interaction”. The Australian eSafety Commissioner determined that Twitch is built around facilitating online social interaction and engagement through features like livestreaming. The other nine covered platforms are Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, X and YouTube. The Commissioner used the same announcement to report that it does not believe Pinterest is a covered platform because it is “more commonly used by individuals collating images for inspiration and idea curation.” It is up to the individual social media platforms to implement the age limit for all their Australian account holders, potentially including systems that use facial recognition technology or official ID documents. Twitch will not allow Australians under 16 to create accounts beginning December 10th and existing accounts for users under 16 will be deactivated by January 9th.
Context – Online age verification is rapidly expanding along a rubric of porn, social media, and game sites with social features. Age checks in Australia are not limited to social media as additional rules implementing its Online Safety Act (OSA) also go into effect in December to limit access by minors to harmful but legal online content, including online porn. As a result, age checks in Australia are also coming to search engines, including Google and Bing. The UK Online Safety Act, which prompted a growing number of porn, social media, and gaming sites to implement age verification, has also led to a growing use of VPN services in the UK to circumvent checks. There is expected to be similar VPN use in Australia. Officials in the UK and legislators in several US states proposing age-based social media limits are calling for restrictions on VPNs.