With the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 having come into effect on 10 December 2025, Pureprofile returns with its second wave of research to understand how the ban is playing out in practice and what it now means for parents, teachers, children, and young adults six months on.
Building on the findings of our Wave 1 report published in December 2025, this second wave brings together fresh insights from 1,025 Australians, including parents of children aged 8-15, teachers across primary and secondary schools, adolescents aged 16-24, and children aged 8-15 themselves (assisted by parents). The findings track what has shifted since Wave 1 – in community sentiment, confidence in the law’s effectiveness, and how young people are currently accessing and using digital platforms under the new rules.
The research highlights where the ban is gaining traction and where it is falling short, revealing how expectations, behaviours, and concerns are evolving as enforcement responsibility shifts from platforms to families.
Download the report to explore:
- How compliance has changed since Wave 1, with 78% of under-16s still accessing banned platforms
- Why age verification remains weak and uneven – only 31% of children report having had their face scanned, and of those, roughly half passed as over 16
- The workarounds under-16s are using to stay on banned platforms, and the differences between younger (8-12) and older (13-15) children in how frequently they attempt them
- How children’s online activity has shifted since Wave 1 – including which platforms they are moving to, and why some banned platforms are seeing increased usage among younger children
- Ongoing exposure to harmful content, including violent, bullying, sexual and self-harm material, despite the ban being in place
- What’s driving positive outcomes in families where the ban is working
- Key takeaways for policymakers in other countries watching Australia’s progress
Download the report to explore the full findings or get in touch to discuss your next custom research study.
Missed Wave 1? Download the 2025 report here.
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Report prepared by Little Duck Insights.