Australia’s new age restriction laws for social media come into effect today, signalling a major shift in how online services must support age-appropriate access for younger users. As platforms prepare for increased regulatory scrutiny and tight compliance timelines, Yoti is enabling our social media partners to deploy trusted, privacy-preserving age assurance at scale.
These reforms, led by the eSafety Commissioner, require major social media platforms to take ‘reasonable steps’ to stop under 16s from creating an account or using their services. There are no exceptions to this age limit, not even those with parental consent. The rules apply to all under 16s, including those who already have accounts.
Proven age checks for global platforms
For platforms operating in Australia, and for those preparing for similar rules emerging in other regions, accuracy, user experience and privacy protection are critical. Yoti’s technology already underpins age checks for major global brands including Meta and TikTok. These companies rely on us for solutions that:
- work accurately and fairly across diverse user bases and markets
- minimise friction and drop-off during onboarding
- offer transparent privacy safeguards
- integrate efficiently with existing trust and safety workflows
With over 1 billion age checks completed worldwide and around 1 million checks carried out every day, our systems have been tested extensively under high load and varied use cases.
Flexible age assurance, built for compliance and user trust
Yoti provides several highly effective age assurance methods, allowing organisations to choose the approach that best supports their regulatory requirements. These include facial age estimation, reusable Digital IDs, reusable age tokens and identity document verification. All methods are independently tested and assessed for bias. Our age verification and age estimation technology was also found to excel during Australia’s Age Assurance Technology Trial.
Notes from our CEO and Chief Policy & Regulatory Officer
Robin Tombs, CEO of Yoti, said “Australia’s new legislation marks a significant moment in the global conversation about how to create safer, age-appropriate online spaces for young people. As platforms navigate new expectations around responsible design and age assurance, we remain committed to providing technology that is secure, privacy-preserving, effective and proven in real-world environments. Our mission is to give people simple, trusted ways to prove their age while protecting their anonymity.”
Julie Dawson, Chief Policy & Regulatory Officer of Yoti, said “The new age restriction rules in Australia show just how important it is to have age checks that are safe, clear and respectful of people’s privacy. These tools should help create online experiences that are suitable for different ages, without asking anyone to share unnecessary personal information. At Yoti, we’ll keep working closely with regulators, platforms and partners to ensure these solutions are responsible, evidence-based and designed to support safe, age-suitable access, helping young people enjoy the digital world and thrive online.”
