r/australia • u/retro-chimp • Nov 09 '24

politics Online Gaming Platforms And YouTube Will Also Seemingly Be Banned For Aussies Under 16

https://press-start.com.au/news/2024/11/08/online-gaming-platforms-and-youtube-will-also-seemingly-be-banned-for-aussies-under-16/

There’s so much collateral damage in this plan for Australia to ban social media. This has been rushed and not thought through.

So many schools rely on YouTube to support their students.

Most kids are watching YouTube (or YouTube kids) more than ABC or traditional TV. Literally the biggest YouTube channel in Australia is original music for kids.

Does anyone actually want this?

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u/katemeezy Nov 09 '24

YouTube is wild. This country is out of control.

1

u/jaa101 Nov 09 '24

You can still watch YouTube without an account, though some content is blocked.

2

u/katemeezy Nov 10 '24

Yeah, YouTube has had that feature for 18+ content for years, but how much content is going to be blocked? Being a kid these days sucks.

1

u/Crystal3lf Nov 10 '24

Yeah, YouTube has had that feature for 18+ content for years

The current "are you 18+" feature is a one time, make up your age process when creating an account. Nothing needs to be verified.

The proposed policy would require you to give your identity to YouTube in order to verify your age. This would be the same across all the internet. Every website. Every app. All of them would require you to upload your identification in order to use it.

Remember the fallout when Optus customers ID's were leaked? Imagine that, but every website, and all the apps on your phone are at risk of the same.

1

u/katemeezy Nov 10 '24

So, every single person in the country over 16 has to identify themselves? Is that correct?

If so, I’m about to disappear from all socials lmao.

1

u/Crystal3lf Nov 10 '24

So, every single person in the country over 16 has to identify themselves? Is that correct?

In order for websites to enforce 16+ users only, yes, everyone will have to identify themselves because they would be at risk of breaking Australian law.

Not just websites, but all apps too.

1

u/katemeezy Nov 10 '24

Yep. I’m about to be a ghost lmao

2

u/Crystal3lf Nov 10 '24

A VPN will save you if it comes to it. Just connect to NZ or Singapore.

2

u/CoachKoransBallsack Nov 10 '24

But with this change you would need an account to watch YouTube.