Tech giants will apply multiple layers of security to weed out young users under Australia‘s world-first ban on social media for under-16s.

If they fail to take “reasonable steps” to block young teens, the firms behind platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and YouTube face hefty fines.

Here are the main methods they’re turning to as the law takes effect Wednesday:

## ID please

It sounds simple: scan your passport, driver’s licence or othre official ID to prove you are aged 16 or over.

But beyond the potential for teens to use a parent or older sibling’s ID, this raises privacy concerns that could scare off people legally allowed to hold an account.

So australia has told social media platforms they cannot require users to show a government ID-even if a dispute arises over someone’s age.Some platforms are employing third-party services to make the process smoother for users who choose to certify their date of birth this way.

Such as, snapchat account holders can prove their age through an Australian bank account, or by providing ID to the Singapore-based age verification service k-ID.

“the documents you submit will only be used to verify your age,” Snapchat’s parent company Snap says.

“Snap will only collect a ‘yes/no’ result on whether someone is above the minimum age threshold,” it explains.

New Online Safety Laws Take Effect

New laws designed to protect children online went into effect today. These regulations require platforms to prevent kids from accessing harmful content.Companies are now legally obligated to prioritize child safety, and they’re expected to develop their own methods for achieving this.

The internet safety watchdog acknowledges a perfect solution isn’t realistic. “Of course, no solution is highly likely to be 100% effective all of the time,” they stated.

Andy Lulham,from Verifymy,a company specializing in age-check technology,anticipates challenges. “Age estimation methods may not always successfully identify every user,especially teens trying to bypass the systems,” he explained. He added that false positives – incorrectly identifying adults as children – are also a concern.

The laws place a important burden on tech companies. They must demonstrate they are taking reasonable steps to protect young users. Failure to comply could result in substantial fines.

Critics argue the laws could lead to overblocking, limiting access to legitimate content for all users. Others worry about privacy implications, as age verification often requires collecting personal data. Though, supporters believe the benefits of increased child safety outweigh these concerns.

platforms are currently implementing various age-verification methods, including age estimation technology and requiring users to provide proof of age. The effectiveness of these approaches remains to be seen, and ongoing monitoring will be crucial.

The government has stated it will review the laws’ impact after a year and make adjustments as needed. This is a rapidly evolving area, and the regulations will likely adapt over time.