A proposed Australian internet safety bill could force Google to block users under the age of 18 from accessing its Gmail service, a company policy representative warned during a Senate hearing on Monday. The warning highlights broader industry pushback against draft regulations that major technology firms argue are overly broad and prone to regulatory overreach.
Under the Digital Duty of Care legislation, which has successfully cleared the House of Representatives but still requires cross-party backing in the Senate, internet platforms must demonstrate active measures to eliminate harmful content or face financial penalties reaching up to A$109 million, equivalent to roughly $75.1 million.
Tech companies and civil liberties advocates contend that the legislation grants regulators excessive discretion in defining what constitutes harmful material, creating immense pressure on platforms to aggressively remove content. Google's recent warnings illustrate anxieties that the framework's reach could extend deeply into ordinary internet utilities.
Rachel Lord, the head of policy for Australia and New Zealand at Google's YouTube, testified at the Senate hearing that a specific provision requiring age verification whenever children face potential exposure to pornography could force the company to verify ages and potentially restrict access to standard daily communication platforms like email, messaging, and private file storage.
She cautioned that the requirements could introduce intrusive monitoring practices into private personal communications and cloud storage systems.
Similar apprehensions were expressed by representatives from Meta, TikTok, and Snap. These platforms warned that the legislation threatens to suppress digital communication by granting regulators extensive authority to evaluate what behavior or content is harmful, while simultaneously superseding existing mandatory industry codes.
Several industry participants noted that the legal uncertainty creates strong financial incentives for platforms to over-moderate content to protect themselves against severe regulatory fines. Meanwhile, the Australian government maintains that a comprehensive and broad set of regulatory standards remains necessary to guarantee online safety, and the legislative hearings are ongoing.