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Snapchat starts age checks in Australia ahead of teen social media ban

Snapchat starts age checks in Australia ahead of teen social media ban

Snapchat has begun asking children and teenagers in Australia to verify their ages, including with software owned by the country’s banks, according to a company spokesperson. The move on Monday comes as Australia prepares to enforce a world-first social media ban for children under the age of 16 starting on December 10. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The law, which threatens social media platforms with a fine of up to 49.5 million Australian dollars ($31.95m) for noncompliance, is one of the world’s toughest regulations targeting Big Tech. In addition to Snapchat, the ban currently applies to YouTube, X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Reddit, Twitch and Kick. In a statement on Saturday, Snapchat said users will be able to verify their age through the ConnectID application, which links to their bank accounts, or by using software owned by Singapore-headquartered age-assurance provider, k-ID. ConnectID, which is owned and used by most major Australian banks, said it would send the tech platform a “yes/no” signal about whether the person was over 16 based on their account details, without making them upload sensitive information. “The goal here is to protect young people online without creating new privacy risks,” said ConnectID managing director Andrew Black in a statement. In the k-ID option, users can upload government-issued identification cards to verify their ages or submit photos, which the application will then use to estimate an age range. ‘Keep lines of communication open’ Snapchat has previously said it believes about 440,000 of its users in Australia are aged between 13 and 15. Advertisement Snapchat added that it “strongly disagreed” with the Australian government’s assessment that it should be included in the social media ban, claiming its service provides a “visual messaging app”. “Disconnecting teens from their friends and family doesn’t make them safer – it may push them to less safe, less private messaging apps,” it warned. Some other apps have been able to secure an exception from the ban, including Discord, WhatsApp, Lego Play and Pinterest. But Australian authorities have reserved the right to update the list of banned platforms as required. A number of young people and advocates have expressed concerns about the potential consequences of the new ban, including 18-year-old journalist and founder of youth news service 6 News Australia Leo Puglisi, who told an Australian Senate inquiry that the ban will affect young people’s access to information. UNICEF Australia has also expressed concerns about implementation, saying the changes proposed by the Australian government “won’t fix the problems young people face online”. “Social media has a lot of good things, like education and staying in touch with friends,” UNICEF Australia said in a statement. “We think it’s more important to make social media platforms safer and to listen to young people to make sure any changes actually help.” Katrina Lines, the CEO of children’s therapy provider Act for Kids, said that parents should start having conversations with children as soon as possible about how they can stay connected as the ban comes into effect over the coming weeks. “It’s important to keep the lines of communication open in the lead up to and even long after these changes take effect,” Lines said. Act for Kids said it surveyed more than 300 Australian children aged 10 to 16, and found 41 percent would prefer to connect with family in real life compared to only 15 percent who preferred to spend time online. But Lines said families still need to work out how to improve in-person connections. “One way of starting this conversation could be by asking them how they would like to stay connected to friends and family outside of social media,” she said. Global concern The Australian ban comes amid growing global concern over the effects of social media on children’s health and safety, and companies including TikTok, Snapchat, Google and Meta Platforms – the operator of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp – are facing lawsuits in the United States for their role in fuelling a mental health crisis. Regulators around the world are closely watching whether Australia’s sweeping restrictions can work. Advertisement Malaysia’s Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said on Sunday that the Malaysian government also plans to ban social media for users under the age of 16, starting from next year. He said the government was reviewing the mechanisms used in Australia and other nations to impose age restrictions for social media use, citing a need to protect youths from online harms such as cyberbullying, financial scams and child sexual abuse. “We hope by next year that social media platforms will comply with the government’s decision to bar those under the age of 16 from opening user accounts,” he told reporters, according to a video of his remarks posted online by local daily The Star. In New Zealand, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is also planning to introduce a similar bill to restrict children’s social media use, while Indonesia, too, has said it is preparing legislation to protect young people from “physical, mental, or moral perils”. In Europe, France, Spain, Italy, Denmark and Greece are jointly testing a template for an age verification app, while the Dutch government has advised parents to forbid children under 15 from using social media apps like TikTok and Snapchat. Adblock test (Why?)

Top military leaders head to Puerto Rico to thank troops supporting Caribbean missions

Top military leaders head to Puerto Rico to thank troops supporting Caribbean missions

Two of the U.S. military’s top leaders will visit Puerto Rico on Monday to meet with troops and express gratitude for their work supporting missions across the Caribbean and Latin America. Pentagon officials announced the visit in a memo on Sunday, saying the trip will include meetings with service members stationed in Puerto Rico and sailors operating in the Caribbean. “Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and SEAC David L. Isom are visiting Puerto Rico on November 24, 2025, for the second time to engage with service members and thank them for their outstanding support to regional missions,” the media advisory read. “They will also visit and thank Sailors operating at sea for their dedicated, unwavering service in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility.” Caine and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth marked the first visit in September, when they stopped by on behalf of the Trump administration to show support for troops training on the island. SECRETARY OF WAR HEGSETH LANDS IN PUERTO RICO AS US RAMPS UP CARIBBEAN CARTEL FIGHT WITH NAVAL FORCES The meeting took place at Muñiz Air Base in Carolina, outside San Juan, and drew top brass including Puerto Rico National Guard Adjutant General Carlos José Rivera-Román, Public Safety Secretary Brig. Gen. Arthur Garffer, and other senior military leaders. Hegseth spoke to nearly 300 soldiers at the base, thanking and describing them as “American warriors.” The secretary of war also affirmed that those serving in the Armed Forces will be the best equipped and prepared in the world. The latest visit comes amid rising tensions in the Caribbean Sea, as the U.S. military expands its naval footprint near Venezuela, part of President Donald Trump’s push to choke off drug flows from Latin America. SOUTHCOM COMMANDER ANNOUNCES SUDDEN RETIREMENT AMID TRUMP DRUG WAR IN CARIBBEAN Earlier this month, Hegseth announced the official launch of Operation Southern Spear, a mission targeting narco-terror networks across Latin America. Hegseth said on X at the time that U.S. Southern Command and Joint Task Force Southern Spear will lead the mission to defend the homeland and dismantle narco-terrorist networks across the Western Hemisphere. “This mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people,” Hegseth said. HEGSETH ANNOUNCES OPERATION TO REMOVE ‘NARCO-TERRORISTS FROM OUR HEMISPHERE’ Since early September, U.S. military forces have carried out numerous lethal strikes against narcotics vessels operated by designated terrorist organizations in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, destroying dozens of ships tied to Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang and Colombia’s Ejército de Liberación Nacional. The attacks have killed an estimated 82 suspected narco-terrorists, with three survivors. The campaign began Sept. 2 with a strike that killed 11 alleged members of Tren de Aragua and continued through October and November with a series of targeted operations that eliminated dozens more across known trafficking routes. U.S. forces have hit submersibles, fishing boats and high-speed vessels, including one ELN-affiliated craft that drew criticism from Colombia’s president after three men were killed. Several strikes took place near Venezuela’s coast, while others occurred in the eastern Pacific, where most recent operations have been concentrated.