Kids are outsmarting social media bans. That's not a problem we need to solve

The real solution to this has always been as much about education. Teach the kids about social media the way we teach about drugs and sex. It’s in many ways more ubiquitous to many teens than the other two these days.

(Oh and regulate the companies, not what consumers are allowed to do)

Yes, it is. I don't want to live in a country where everything is illegal but not enforced (until someone in power dislikes you).

> Social media bans suppress kids’ access to information, including information that’s essential to their development, identity formation, and socialization, especially during adolescence.

Indeed children were deprived of their potential for development for all of humanity up until the early 2000s, thank god we finally closed the gap with social media algorithms...

Is this sponsored by Meta?

lol the millennial generation has been outsmarting media bans for 30+ years now. Dunno what made anyone expect Gen Z or alpha couldn’t do the same.

Of course it doesn't work.

Everyone knew it when these sort of measures were first discussed here way back when and everyone knew that they would be bypassed as soon as they were implemented.

But politicians, lobbies, and everyone else who gains from this do not care.

If this is the cokamany bullshit Child Safety Act that the AU Gov put in place with the social media ban and age verification shit™ -- I knew this would happens inevitably. The whole thing was stupid as fuck. Not a single one of us that _actually_ work in this industry were consulted to ask whether we _thought_ this was a good idea, no sir. -- Be careful my fellow Aussies, or we end up letting the government build the Great Wall of Australa!

Are these authors bought and paid for by big tech? This assertion, with nothing to back it up and zero mention of the negative side effects, calls the entire article’s legitimacy into doubt for me:

> It’s important for kids to do this online, an arena where they often develop social skills and refine their identities.

Later on they say:

> Rather than attempting to block young people from online services that allow them to access information and engage in age-essential communication

The fact being “social media online” is taken as a given for under 16s is laughable. Kids do not need to socialize like this, they do not need to be online, they can and should go outside. When they turn 16 their brains will be slightly more fully formed and I could go on and on but it seems these authors just want the kids exposed to the algorithms.

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I suppose Wikipedia needs to go to the dark net for allowing British kids (and adults) to read it freely. One might reckon that reading Wikipedia would be good for kids (and adults), but I suppose the Soviet Uni... err. disagrees. I mean, sarcasm aside, that is the real, fundamental danger here; VPN use has already seen big increases in Australia and the UK, and the dark net is the last place no one should go but may have to. Soon in the EU too, I suppose.

https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Wikimedi...