Peer-reviewed article

Safety by design: statutory review of online safety regulation in Australia

Salamah Ansari · 1 Jan 2026

Abstract

Abstract There is a broad consensus that unregulated use of social media causes harm to children. With the advent of digital platforms, social media reach is quickly evolving, and there is no escaping the incessant need to be online. As the threat of harms caused by social media has gained regulatory attention, taking effect from 10 December 2025, the Australian government banned the use of social media for children under 16 years of age through the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024. This ban formalized a shift to access-based systemic duty from the erstwhile content-based regulation prevalent across the world. Seemingly extreme, this blanket ban is a primary foray into making the online world a safe place, especially for Australian children. This complication is of concern because the blanket ban has received criticism from not only the industry but also researchers and academics. This article provides a statutory review of online safety provisions and demonstrates that this age-based restriction is not an ad hoc measure but a logical culmination of a decade of legislative development. Contrary to regulatory fragmentation, the series of legislation adopted since 2015 facilitates the transition from voluntary guidelines to heavy civil liability. This is accomplished through the incorporation of continuity of office for the Commissioner and a streamlined penalty system. This statutory framework serves as a template for international efforts geared towards a systems-based approach that acknowledges the need for social media service providers to continually strive towards making their platforms as safe as possible. An overarching digital duty of care ought to replace reactive measures that address abuse only after it has occurred, as they fail to address the root cause. The proposed digital duty of care is placed on the online service providers who operate at an advantage vis-à-vis the end-users reporting harm.