Australia plans to sue five platforms, including Meta and TikTok, for violating the under-16 social media ban.

PANews October 20 news, according to Bloomberg, Australian Communications Minister Anika Wells said the government will sue five platforms—Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube—alleging that they failed to comply with the social media ban for users under 16. The Australian online safety regulator, the eSafety Commissioner, had already launched an investigation into the above platforms in March this year. A July report showed that most underage users were still able to keep or create new accounts, mainly because the platforms lacked effective age verification. Nearly a year after the ban took effect, the government has doubled the maximum penalty for violations to AUD 109.2 million (about USD 76 million) and expanded the agency's investigative powers, allowing it to require platforms to submit documents and summon current and former employees. Wells said that eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant is using these powers to prepare to file a lawsuit in the Federal Court. Meta and eSafety have not yet responded.