Snapchat CEO Criticizes Australian Teen Social Media Ban

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel has publicly opposed Australia’s new social media age restrictions in an opinion piece published in The Financial Times. The law, which bans users under 16 from accessing major social platforms, has already forced Snapchat to remove or restrict 415,000 Australian teen accounts – a significant hit for a platform popular among younger users.

Spiegel argues that the ban represents a flawed approach that fails to meaningfully reduce online harms. “Compliance with the law does not guarantee that Australian teens will be safer or better off,” he wrote. He highlighted key gaps: the policy only targets select platforms, potentially pushing teens toward less regulated, riskier alternatives. In a post-COVID world where digital connection is central to social life, Spiegel noted that banning access on one app does not eliminate online activity – it simply redirects it.

He also questioned the reliability of age estimation technology, calling it “highly imperfect” and difficult to enforce consistently. Spiegel pointed to inconclusive scientific evidence on social media’s overall impact, noting that many studies show most teens benefit from online connections rather than suffer harm.

Instead of platform-specific bans, Spiegel advocated for two better paths:

• Prioritizing digital literacy education to build resilience and guide teens toward developmentally appropriate online experiences.
• Implementing age verification at the app store level for universal, consistent enforcement across the digital ecosystem. “App store-level verification would create one consistent age signal per device and would limit how often personal information must be shared, significantly reducing privacy risks,” he explained.

The Australian law has drawn criticism for relying on partial data and limited research, appearing more populist than evidence-based. Older voters often support such measures, yet research indicates teens tend to be more digitally literate and less vulnerable to certain online risks than adults. For Snapchat, the impact is outsized due to its strong appeal to younger demographics – the company reported a global loss of 3 million daily active users in Q4 2025.