Reddit Challenges Australia Ban on Under 16 Social Media Accounts

Reddit Inc filed an application to the High Court of Australia on December 12 seeking to overturn a recently enacted law that forbids Australians under 16 from holding accounts on designated social media platforms. The California based company also asked, in the alternative, that the court prevent the government from listing Reddit among the platforms subject to the restriction.

The filing, reported by multiple outlets and said to run to 12 pages, challenges the law as incompatible with the Australian Constitution’s implied freedom of political communication. The document argues that barring those under 16 will impede political discourse, noting that "Australian citizens under the age of 16 will, within years if not months, become electors. The choices to be made by those citizens will be informed by political communication in which they engage prior to the age of 18," language drawn from the filing and cited in news coverage.

Reddit’s legal challenge frames the statute as both constitutionally suspect and poorly calibrated to the diversity of online services. The company contends the law "carries some serious privacy and political expression issues for everyone on the internet" and says it has been applied to Reddit inaccurately because the platform is "a forum primarily for adults" and does not have the "traditional social media features the government has taken issue with," according to reporting that summarized the filing and accompanying materials. Reddit also warned that the statute "has the unfortunate effect of forcing intrusive and potentially insecure verification processes on adults as well as minors," a privacy concern that lies at the center of the company’s objection.

Despite launching its legal challenge, Reddit has been reported as complying with the new statutory framework while it pursues judicial review. That compliance underscores the practical pressure on companies navigating a law described by many outlets as a world first in banning children under 16 from major social platforms.

The case arrives against the backdrop of a separate constitutional challenge brought by the Sydney based rights group Digital Freedom Project on behalf of two 15 year olds. That challenge, like Reddit’s, alleges the law unlawfully restricts political communication. The High Court has scheduled a preliminary hearing in late February to set a date for the Digital Freedom Project matter. It is not yet clear whether Reddit’s application will be consolidated with the other case or whether the High Court will issue interim orders that affect the government’s official platform list.

At stake in the litigation are competing public policy goals and technical realities. The government contends the measure protects children from online harms, while opponents say it sweeps too broadly, risks invasive age checks, and curtails participation in civic life. How the High Court addresses the constitutional questions and the practical implications for verification technology will shape not only Reddit’s operations in Australia but also global debate over how democracies regulate the online lives of young people.