In November 2024, Australia passed the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill—a law banning children under the age of 16 from accessing social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat.

 

While the new law in Australia serves as a significant step toward safeguarding children online, its implications extend far beyond Australia. In fact, I believe it also provides a potential roadmap for how the United States can respond to similar concerns surrounding social media use by minors.

 

Under the Australian law, tech companies are required to take reasonable steps to prevent underage users from accessing their platforms—or face fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars or above (about $31 million in U.S. currency). The goal of the law is to protect underage users from the social pressures of social media, inappropriate content, bullying and harassment from peers, and interactions with adult users.

 

While many see this Australian age limit as controversial, governments have been protecting minors for years—from setting the working age to setting what can be advertised to minors and what content minors can have access to. This Australian law is really about the ethics of businesses interacting with minors.

 

As a media attorney, a professor of law and a talent agent who regularly works with social media platforms, I teach about and advise clients on issues concerning the media and ethics. Here are my top three steps for how businesses can be more ethical when interacting with minors.

 

1. Follow the law.

Following the law should be the baseline for your media strategy when doing business with minors. In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has two main laws that businesses need to consider when interacting with young adults:

• The Children’s Television Act (CTA): This law limits the amount of time that broadcasters can devote to advertising during children’s shows.

• The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA): This law applies to the information that websites can collect for minors under the age of 13. It can also be applied to websites aimed at general audiences.

2. Consider company values.

Next, consider your company values. I believe businesses can—and should—strive for a higher standard than the law demands. A company’s ethical guidelines generally encompass a broader range of values than the law requires, such as honesty, transparency and fairness. These values can guide your company in situations where the law might be silent.

The problem for many companies is that their businesses were originally created with the intention of serving adult users. Consider that Facebook was originally marketed to college students with a college email address. Only adult users could access the site. However, these days, anyone with an email address can join a social network. This is why you need to consider how you advertise and sell your products and services in order to protect underage users.

3. Develop policies.

If you don’t already have them, create clear and strong policies about ethical conduct with underage consumers. These should go above the bar set by local, state and federal laws. Here are a few steps I recommend to create a good set of policies:

• Define ethical expectations and outline any prohibited conduct with underage users. Good areas to cover are access to content, advertising and age verification.

• Make them highly visible. Your ethical policies should be posted publicly and easy to find on your website.

• Review and update them regularly. Make sure to review your policies yearly to conform to local, state, federal and international laws.

When it comes to interacting with children, businesses can do better. Underage users need to be protected until they can make their own informed choices. By taking these steps, you can not only make your business better but also help make the world a better place.

 

This article was originally published by Forbes Jan 13, 2025.