According to the Wisdom Financial APP, Australia approved a ban on children under 16 using social media on Thursday. The law requires tech giants such as Instagram and Facebook's parent company Meta Platforms (META.US) to prevent minors from logging in, otherwise they could face fines of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (32 million US dollars). The ban will be implemented from January next year and will take effect a year later.

Due to concerns about the negative impact of social media on the mental health of teenagers, more and more governments globally have begun or are planning to restrict the age of social media use through legislative means.

Some governments, including France and certain states in the USA, have already passed laws restricting minors from accessing the Internet without parental permission, but Australia's ban is stricter. Legislation in Florida, USA, prohibits children under 14 from using social media, while teenagers aged 14 and 15 need parental consent to use social media, but this ban faces legal challenges.

Australia's social media ban has faced opposition from privacy advocates and some children's rights organizations, but the latest poll shows that 77% of people still support this ban.

However, this ban may strain Australia's relationship with key ally USA. The owner of X platform and close ally of US President-elect Trump, Elon Musk, stated this month that this seems like a 'backdoor way to control all Australians' access to the internet'.

This ban has also heightened Australia's hostile sentiment towards most US tech giants. Australia was the first country to require social media companies to pay for news content and now plans to fine these companies for failing to curb fraudulent behavior.

A Meta spokesperson stated that the company respects Australian law, but it has concerns about this process. Australia "rushed through this legislation without proper consideration of evidence, as well as industry measures in place to ensure age-appropriate experiences for users, and the voices of young people."

The spokesperson mentioned: "The current task is to ensure effective negotiations on all rules related to the bill, to ensure that the results are technically feasible, without imposing heavy burdens on parents and teenagers, and to commit that the rules will be uniformly applicable in all social applications used by teenagers."

A spokesperson from Snapchat's parent company Snap Inc (SNAP.US) stated that Snap will comply with Australian laws and regulations, but has serious concerns about the legislation.

The spokesperson stated: "While there are still many unresolved issues about how this law will be specifically implemented, we will work closely with the government and cybersecurity commissioner during the 12-month implementation period to help develop a set of privacy-conscious, safe, and practical approaches."

TikTok and X will be affected by the Australian government ban. However, platforms like YouTube, considered by the Australian government as health and education-related, and instant messaging services like WhatsApp and Discord are not affected by the ban.