In brief
Reddit has taken its case to the Australian High Court, challenging the country's 2025 ban that blocks users under 16 from creating accounts on major social media platforms. The company says the law is poorly designed, hindering youth communication and political debate, and could set a precedent for similar restrictions worldwide. Australian officials, however, are defending the ban and have raised penalties for violators.
Reddit has filed a lawsuit in the Australian High Court against the country's first teen‑age social media ban, arguing the law overreaches and hampers political debate. The lawsuit began on Thursday, November 3, with a lawyer for the platform delivering the case to the court.
How the law limits teens
The ban, which took effect in late 2025, prohibits large social‑media platforms from allowing anyone under 16 to hold an account. The government said the move was meant to protect minors, but the court case will explore whether the measure is effective.
Reddit says the law is "ill thought out" and "inept," because it does not have enforcement tools to keep minors off the sites and it ignores other online spaces, such as gaming websites, where bullying can occur.
Perry Herzfeld, representing Reddit, said the ban stops youths from creating or responding to content on the most important communication platform in the modern world. He added that it is a "profound restriction on political debate in Australia."
"That is a very profound restriction on political debate in Australia," Herzfeld said. "There is a very substantial restriction on what young people can now do."
The Australian government is defending the ban. Communications Minister, a named defendant in the case, said the law remains in place and that the government will continue to shape it.
Government officials have doubled the maximum fine for non‑compliance to A$99 million and granted the eSafety Commissioner greater discovery powers. They also said they are preparing enforcement action against major platforms.
Multiple studies, including one by the eSafety Commissioner, showed that most Australian teens under 16 still use social media even after the ban went live.
A successful challenge could prompt other countries, from Britain to Malaysia, to rethink or modify similar youth‑protection laws. The case now moves forward in Australia's top court, where a decision will shape both national and international policies for years to come.
