eSafety Commissioner

Gaming giants urged to level-up child safety measures

Playing it safe: how online game services are (or are not) keeping kids safe online

The Australian

Major gaming platforms have ‘significant gaps’ in child protection

BBC News

Fortnite, Roblox, Minecraft and Steam must improve child safety, Australian report finds

7NEWS

New report finds significant gaps in online gaming protections for children

The Sydney Morning Herald

Two of Australias most popular gaming platforms targeted over risks to children

Why Safety Should Always Be The Aim Of The Game

Epic Games

Epic Games Community Rules

Roblox

Roblox Community Standards

Federal Register of Legislation

The Risks And Benefits Of Online Gaming For Children And Young People

Anthony Albanese

9News Australia

Terry Flew

Australian Human Rights Commission

Aaron Mackey

Joanne Orlando

Melissa McIntosh

Damini Satija

Julie Inman Grant

Timothy Koskie

"They took the easy option, and it will fail."

“New accounts are being created and the age-verification tools that the government assured Australians would be effective, have proven laughably easy to bypass with some makeup and good lighting.”

“Tech-savvy teens simply use VPNs, fake birth photos for face scans, or migrate to less regulated platforms like Lemon8, or to platforms not part of the ban like video games. Enforcement is proving to be difficult in the days leading up to the ban.”

"Some verification methods are often inaccurate while others are easily circumvented.”

"Technological workarounds – such as VPNs and false age declarations – may undermine the effectiveness of the ban."

"This law will also push many users toward platforms that are more personal and private, like Telegram channels, WhatsApp Communities, and Signal Groups, which are not currently banned because they are important tools for encrypted and direct communication."

David Inserra

“Ultimately, reducing online harm would be a great outcome; however, we know from evidence that ‘banning’ anything from young people won’t work on its own.”

Louise La Sala

“There’s a fair amount of teething problems around it. Many young people have been posting on TikTok that they successfully evaded the age limitations and that’s to be expected.”

"I think it will help a lot of parents because it's not them saying no, it's an actual law."

Cassie Xintavelonis

“We don’t expect safety laws to eliminate every single breach. If we did, speed limits would have failed because people speed, drinking limits would have failed because, believe it or not, some kids do get access to alcohol.”

“The fact that teenagers occasionally find a way to have a drink doesn’t diminish the value of having a clear national standard.”

"Just as the banning of phones in school classrooms by many state governments hasn't on day one led to perfect compliance, now it's just accepted that there are improved educational outcomes, improved behaviour, improved social outcomes as a result."

"Australia's social media ban is already driving change, and is proof that the threat of regulation works, even before the law takes effect. Waiting for perfect policy risks paralysis when real progress is already within reach.”

Will Australia's Under 16 Social Media Ban be Effective?

Australia's eSafety Commission released a report Friday finding significant gaps in how the providers of Roblox, Minecraft, Fortnite and Steam protect children, following compulsory information-gathering notices issued to the four companies in April.

Australia's eSafety Commission released a report Friday finding significant gaps in how the providers of Roblox, Minecraft, Fortnite and Steam protect children, following compulsory information-gathering notices issued to the four companies in April.

The notices required providers to explain how they met the government's Basic Online Safety Expectations between Oct. 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, covering child sexual exploitation, violence material, cyberbullying and online hate.

The notices required providers to explain how they met the government's Basic Online Safety Expectations between Oct. 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, covering child sexual exploitation, violence material, cyberbullying and online hate.

Valve, which operates Steam and Steam Chat, was the only provider that did not use hash-matching technology, and its chat protections were limited to a URL detection tool that the report said "mainly blocked scams."

Valve, which operates Steam and Steam Chat, was the only provider that did not use hash-matching technology, and its chat protections were limited to a URL detection tool that the report said "mainly blocked scams."

Roblox and Valve trained their language detection models using only internal datasets without regular retraining, the report found. Roblox's "Image Auto-mod" tool, used to detect violence and child sexual abuse material, had a recall rate of 51%.

Roblox and Valve trained their language detection models using only internal datasets without regular retraining, the report found. Roblox's "Image Auto-mod" tool, used to detect violence and child sexual abuse material, had a recall rate of 51%.

Minecraft and Fortnite relied largely on self-declared ages, allowing users claiming to be 18 or older to reach higher-risk chat features. Roblox introduced stronger age assurance in December 2025, while Steam began credit card checks.

Minecraft and Fortnite relied largely on self-declared ages, allowing users claiming to be 18 or older to reach higher-risk chat features. Roblox introduced stronger age assurance in December 2025, while Steam began credit card checks.

About 9 in 10 Australian children aged 8 to 17 have played online games, eSafety research found. Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said predatory adults often make first contact with children in games before grooming them.

About 9 in 10 Australian children aged 8 to 17 have played online games, eSafety research found. Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said predatory adults often make first contact with children in games before grooming them.

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Australia says platforms like Steam and Roblox have 'significant' child safety gaps

Australia

Computers & internet

Games

Children and youth

Australia says platforms like Steam and Roblox have 'significant' child safety gaps

Australia says platforms like Steam and Roblox have 'significant' child safety gaps

The Controversies

Australia

McIntosh

Orlando

Mackey

Commission

Inserra

Sala

Flew

Xintavelonis

Grant

Albanese

Albanese

Koskie

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Australia says platforms like Steam and Roblox have 'significant' child safety gaps

Australia says platforms like Steam and Roblox have 'significant' child safety gaps

The Controversies

Australia

McIntosh

Orlando

Mackey

Commission

Inserra

Sala

Flew

Xintavelonis

Grant

Albanese

Albanese

Koskie

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