Malaysia is preparing to follow Australia in legislating a ban on the use of social media by children under the age of 16, with the government to require platforms to implement identity verification next year, The Star reported.

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil noted the government will review how other countries are approaching age restrictions to protect children from online harm, the newspaper wrote.

Last month, the country’s Cabinet approved a measure to raise the minimum age for social media users to 16.

Platforms will be required to use electronic know-your-customer identity checks to enforce the ban.

In Australia, starting 10 December Facebook, Instagram, Kick, Reddit, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X and YouTube will be required to take reasonable steps to prevent children under the age of 16 from having accounts.

Indonesia is considering a similar ban and is working on interim guidelines requiring platforms to follow child protection standards.

A number of countries in Europe, including France and Spain, are also considering or planning age restrictions on social media use for minors.