Apple’s expanded parental controls and App Store rules for social-media apps overlap with Australia’s under-16 social-media ban but do not enforce it. The article says there is no evidence these changes are generating measurable financial returns for Apple.
Australia became the first country to ban social media for under-16s in December. Its government has also proposed draft legislation requiring platforms to offer a choice between algorithmically recommended feeds and posts from friends and creators users follow; it plans to seek feedback before introducing a bill to Parliament later this year. After meeting Apple Executive Chair Tim Cook, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Cook regarded Australia’s work as “world-leading.” Apple did not independently use that description when Reuters requested comment, instead referring to Cook’s post about showing Albanese new innovations, including child-safety controls.
Apple previewed the controls in June, before the September meeting, and says online-safety and health experts informed them. Its iOS 27, iPadOS 27 and macOS 27 updates add category-based time limits, clearer Screen Time views, parental approval for new Safari sites, and Communication Safety blocking detected gore, violent content and nudity in shared images and videos. App developers must flag social-media functions; such apps get a 13+ minimum rating and Social Media label. Developers who disable those functions for under-13s must use Apple’s age-range API to check age before enabling them; it does not share the child’s birthday.
