Australia: Proposed changes to digital regulation

The Australian Government has introduced a raft of new digital legislation, including to combat misinformation and disinformation, and hate speech. It has also announced plans for minimum age requirements for social media.

In brief

September is turning out to be a significant month for developments to digital regulation in Australia.


Contents

The digital regulation developments are:

  1. The first-tranche of long-anticipated reforms to the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) was announced, which include both the anti-doxxing and the statutory tort of invasion of privacy, as discussed in our client alert here
  2. A proposal to introduce a federal minimum age requirement for social media has been announced, although the details of this proposal are not yet known.
  3. A revamped bill on misinformation and disinformation (Communications Legislation Amendment (Combatting Misinformation and Disinformation) Bill 2024 (Cth) ("Misinformation and Disinformation Bill")) has been introduced to Parliament. It seeks to combat misinformation and disinformation on "digital communication platforms", and contains various amendments to the exposure draft bill which was released for public consultation in last year.
  4. The Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill 2024 ("Hate Crimes Bill"), which aims to strengthen existing legislation to combat hate crimes against targeted groups, has also been introduced to Parliament.
  5. Finally, on 13 September 2024, the Government opened public consultation on the new proposed Scams Prevention Framework.

Click here to access the full alert.


Copyright © 2024 Baker & McKenzie. All rights reserved. Ownership: This documentation and content (Content) is a proprietary resource owned exclusively by Baker McKenzie (meaning Baker & McKenzie International and its member firms). The Content is protected under international copyright conventions. Use of this Content does not of itself create a contractual relationship, nor any attorney/client relationship, between Baker McKenzie and any person. Non-reliance and exclusion: All Content is for informational purposes only and may not reflect the most current legal and regulatory developments. All summaries of the laws, regulations and practice are subject to change. The Content is not offered as legal or professional advice for any specific matter. It is not intended to be a substitute for reference to (and compliance with) the detailed provisions of applicable laws, rules, regulations or forms. Legal advice should always be sought before taking any action or refraining from taking any action based on any Content. Baker McKenzie and the editors and the contributing authors do not guarantee the accuracy of the Content and expressly disclaim any and all liability to any person in respect of the consequences of anything done or permitted to be done or omitted to be done wholly or partly in reliance upon the whole or any part of the Content. The Content may contain links to external websites and external websites may link to the Content. Baker McKenzie is not responsible for the content or operation of any such external sites and disclaims all liability, howsoever occurring, in respect of the content or operation of any such external websites. Attorney Advertising: This Content may qualify as “Attorney Advertising” requiring notice in some jurisdictions. To the extent that this Content may qualify as Attorney Advertising, PRIOR RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE A SIMILAR OUTCOME. Reproduction: Reproduction of reasonable portions of the Content is permitted provided that (i) such reproductions are made available free of charge and for non-commercial purposes, (ii) such reproductions are properly attributed to Baker McKenzie, (iii) the portion of the Content being reproduced is not altered or made available in a manner that modifies the Content or presents the Content being reproduced in a false light and (iv) notice is made to the disclaimers included on the Content. The permission to re-copy does not allow for incorporation of any substantial portion of the Content in any work or publication, whether in hard copy, electronic or any other form or for commercial purposes.