While a ban on social media for under 16s has passed parliament it will be parents who'll have to deal with its impact. There are warnings that even with the restrictions, parents will need to be vigilant in monitoring their children's activities online.
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00:00Mum-of-two Jane Dutton had been keeping a close eye on the research behind social media
00:08bans for under-16s.
00:10I completely agreed with everything I was reading and I thought I need to have made
00:15the move.
00:16I shouldn't have done it in the first place is the first thought that I had and then thought
00:20now I need to kind of backpedal out of this.
00:22Rather than wait for the government bans to kick in, Jane has had a conversation with
00:27her children and shut down their social media.
00:30She's let their friends know her kids will still be contactable through text message.
00:35They took it pretty well and every day they've said something positive about it whereas I
00:41thought it would be really challenging for them.
00:44While the bans have been debated in federal parliament, it will be in homes across Australia
00:50where the impact of the legislation is felt and for many young people social media has
00:56become a big part of their lives.
00:59It's a big step and I think it is necessary but so many people that I personally know
01:04would just try and find a way around it.
01:06My greatest advice to the parents and carers of teenagers now is to work with their teenager.
01:11We need to understand what needs are being met by the social media use, whether it's
01:16relationship needs, mental health needs, information gathering needs.
01:20Even with the bans, parents are being warned they'll need to remain vigilant.
01:25And what we'll see is young people going into much darker and more dangerous places
01:30on the internet than they are today and it will actually drive help seeking underground.
01:35Jane Dutton is well aware her social media ban doesn't mean job done but for now she
01:42and her family are enjoying the break.
01:44There's just not that constant sound of the buzzing in our house, four phones, constant
01:51notifications and they are hundreds of them so I think it's been a positive response all round.