eSafety will continue working with stakeholders across government and the community to further refine Australia’s approach to online harms following Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s announcement today of a Commonwealth-led approach to age restrictions on digital platforms.
Taking action at a federal level will better enable alignment with the national regulatory framework already established under the Online Safety Act 2021 (‘OSA’).
eSafety is delivering strong outcomes under the OSA already, including preventive and educational programs, systemic interventions, and much greater levels of tech transparency.
Early next month, for example, digital industry associations are expected to return to eSafety, as an indicative target of progress, draft codes limiting access by children to a range of inappropriate content types, including pornography.
Final draft codes covering 8 sections of the online industry, including social media services, messaging and gaming services, app stores and others, are due to the Commissioner to consider for registration by 19 December 2024.
eSafety will also continue building on work it started with the Age Verification Roadmap, leveraging its transparency powers and research capability to expand the evidence base and help ensure future measures are implementable, effective and avoid unintended consequences.
The Government’s review of the OSA and its Age Assurance Trial to explore available age assurance techniques will also be central to this process.
We know online harms can threaten safety across a range of platforms at any age, both before and after the mid-teen years, so it is crucial that we continue to advocate for Safety by Design and build digital literacy as part of a multi-faceted approach.
eSafety remains committed to working with teachers, parents and young people through the eSafety Youth Council to co-design educational resources that help develop vital critical reasoning skills and resilience.
We need to continue preparing our young people for the technology trends and digital environment of the future. More information on eSafety’s resources, programs and complaint schemes can be found at: www.esafety.gov.au.