Well, the Aussies are doing their best to keep up with the Brits:
Australia has activated a new requirement for search engines to verify the ages of their signed-in users, with companies now facing a six-month countdown to full compliance.
Google, which controls more than 90 percent of Australia’s search market, and Microsoft both risk penalties of up to about $50 million per breach if they fail to comply by the June 27, 2026, deadline.
The government’s rhetoric has framed these efforts as protective, but the architecture being built effectively positions identity verification as a precondition for access to key parts of the internet.
Although the code took effect at the end of 2025, the change drew little public attention. That is partly because the rules emerged through administrative regulation rather than new legislation, sidestepping open parliamentary debate.
Here's the "eSafety Commissioner" on the new regulation:
"These provisions will serve as a bulwark and operate in lock step with the new social media age limits,” and, “It’s critical to ensure the layered safety approach…including on the app stores and at the device level, the physical gateways to the internet where kids sign up and first declare their ages."
Australia is the front runner. The fun part is that EU media is now full of "umm why did we want this again?" because of what's going on down under.
It also serves as reminder that compulsory voting doesn't protect you from a nanny state.
In other words: voting harder isn't necessarily the solution either.
I agree, but I'm biased.
a reminder? I could have told you that a priori
Before covid, I never really had a sense that Australia was a den of autocrats. It's like the pandemic sparked something, or perhaps it was already happening.
I'm still kinda rooting for this guy (#1245026), and I'm holding out hope, even though the cops are trying to save face by claiming he is dead
I think it's more "the totalitarian rule of the slim majority". Same in Europe, same in the US. I think it's awful.
The UK puzzles me because despite the regular shifts in election results, laws that took years to be formulated get passed.
I haven't followed it closely, but these things are ugly.
Before covid hit, most Australians never knew that being an Australian did not give them any right to return to Australia, either.
So many were stuck in foreign countries, out of visas and income. Many thousands were stuck on borders inside the country between states too.
Yet the government steadfastly refused to allow Aussies to return to their own country - even after they let a bunch of tennis pros in to compete in the Australian Open.
But at least politicians did get to "show strength" by first tutting at, then expelling Djokovic - but only after he arrived.
Is this anything like when Steam asks me my birth day and I always choose January 1st 1920?
Sadly, I think they plan on making it harder to dodge than that.
I identify as a 106 year old. Who are they to deny my existence.
I tend not to think of all 16 or 17 y/o as 'kids'. Seems a little ridiculous to see people supporting something that has absolutely no capacity to allow for the individualistic variables of human mental development.
It all feels like an excuse to me. But I'm surprised that so many people are willing to accept the infantalization of adolescence.
of course it is an excuse
Australia had a draconian covid policy, either you were not paying attention or you are being willfully naive and ignorant
Does the law apply to aborigines? Or refugees from East Timor?
What boomers use search engines 🤣🤣
If they put id checks on ai we're cooked
Id be interested to see how they'd enforce that on lightning integrated pay 2 ask models
How many Aussies perished at Gallipoli?
apparently not enough
Australia is done
I was friends with an Aussie in 2015 and in hindsight she was a cunt bag