The AUD $99 Million Loophole: Inside the Trans-Tasman Battle Over Teen Social Media
An investigative look at how Australia and New Zealand are dramatically escalating their legal and financial crackdowns to force Big Tech to stop using manipulative loopholes and keep children under 16 off their platforms
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Show Notes
This episode deep dives into the tense "cat-and-mouse" game between regulators and tech giants following the implementation of Australia's historic under-16 social media ban in December 2025. We expose the "poor practices" uncovered by the eSafety Commissioner's active investigations, showing how platforms allowed underage children double-digit attempts to bypass facial age scans and even demanded formal lawyer letters from parents trying to shut down their kids' profiles. Finally, we analyze the major August 2026 escalations, detailing why Australia doubled its non-compliance fines to AUD $99 million and how New Zealand's new ban threatens platforms with penalties of up to 10% of their global revenue.
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