Snap Inc. announced that by the end of January, it had banned or disabled over 415,000 Australian accounts of users under the age of 16, in compliance with the ban on social media use for individuals under this age. The company clarified in a blog post that the disabled accounts include users who stated they were under 16, or whose age was estimated using the platform's age-detection technology. Snap Inc. confirmed that it continues to ban additional accounts daily. This move is part of the Australian government's efforts, which began implementing the ban on ten major platforms in December of last year. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised the suspension or removal of 4.7 million accounts in the first days of the policy's enforcement. However, Snap Inc. pointed to 'significant gaps' in the age-verification mechanism, as some users under 16 may bypass the ban, while others over 16 are accidentally denied access to the app. The company also noted that the accuracy of its age-estimation technology does not exceed two to three years.
