Reddit Inc. filed a lawsuit in the High Court of Australia in Melbourne on Friday challenging a federal law that bans children under 16 from having accounts on major social media platforms.
The California-based company seeks to overturn what it calls a world-first age-based restriction on online access.
Court filings show Reddit initiated the legal action against the Commonwealth of Australia after the government enacted legislation requiring platforms such as Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and X to block users under 16 and verify the ages of all new and existing users.
The company argues that the law imposes disproportionate obligations on platforms and interferes with the rights of Australian users who participate pseudonymously or anonymously. Reddit contends that compliance could require collecting additional personal data, raising privacy and security risks.
The legislation designates large services as “social media services” and requires companies to implement technical systems to estimate or verify ages, update terms of service and sign-up processes, and provide compliance reports to the national online safety regulator.
Officials said the law aims to reduce children’s exposure to harmful content, including cyberbullying, grooming, and violent or sexual material.
Preliminary case management hearings for both Reddit and Digital Rights Watch are scheduled, during which the High Court will determine procedural timetables, including evidence submission and dates for a full hearing.
The Attorney-General’s Department will represent the federal government in defending the legislation. The High Court has not set a final hearing date, and the under-16 social media account ban remains in effect while the legal challenges proceed.
