13 August- Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, deactivated or closed a total of 756,000 accounts in Australia between December 2025 and June 2026, the company said in a statement.
Of the accounts removed, 462,000 were Instagram accounts and 294,000 were Facebook accounts. Meta said all of the accounts were operated by users under the age of 16.
Most Accounts Removed in First Month
The largest number of accounts were deactivated between December and January, shortly after Australia’s under-16 social media restrictions came into effect.
During that one-month period, Meta removed around 331,000 Instagram accounts and 173,000 Facebook accounts.
The company said the account removals were carried out in compliance with Australia’s legislation, which was passed in December to restrict social media access for children under 16.
Meta Says It Respects Australian Law
Meta has previously opposed the Australian legislation on commercial grounds, but the company said it respects the laws of the countries where it operates.
The latest figures were released as Australian authorities continued to scrutinise whether social media companies are complying with the country’s age restrictions.
Majority of Under-16s Were Still Active on Social Media
A survey conducted by the Australian government and several private organisations in March found that around eight in every 10 Australians under the age of 16 were active on social media.
Following the publication of the survey findings, Australia’s internet regulator was preparing potential legal action against Meta and several other social media companies over alleged non-compliance with the restrictions.
Meta’s latest disclosure comes amid that scrutiny.
So far, no other major social media company operating in Australia has publicly released comparable figures on the number of under-16 accounts it has removed or deactivated.
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