‘Small Country, Small Regulator’: Australian Internet Watchdog Calls for ‘Global Regulatory Partnership’

Julie Inman Grant revealed she had a team of 250, far smaller than the UK.

Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant addresses the National Press Club in Canberra, Australia, on June 24, 2025. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

Australia has a team of 250 staff to regulate the internet but eSafety commissioner Julie Inman Grant believes she needs global cooperation to tackle big tech companies on online safety.

Inman Grant reflected on her powers and the consequences when big tech companies do not answer questions from her office.

“We now have some new powers around codes and standards and with the passage in November of the social media minimum age bill means that codes and standards violations, I can fine companies up to $49.5 million for violations,” she told ABC Insiders.

“So we’ve just put together an enforcement taskforce and are looking at the platforms that we are going to target. But you know this is not just, we will end up playing a game of whack-a-mole.”

However, Inman Grant said hers was a small team in a small country.

“If you look at Ofcom, which is the UK sister regulator of ours, they just set up their Online Safety Act in 2023 and already have double the staff, so they’ve got about 500 people to our 250,” she said.

“So to take on not online this many powerful companies but if you think of the broader universe of websites and dating sites and gaming platforms ... we really need a lot more global regulatory partnership to tackle this.”

The UK has already rolled out age verification duties for online platforms. Major platforms including Reddit, Discord, and Pornhub have already started introducing age checks.

In Australia, the federal parliament in November 2024 banned children under 16 from accessing social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X. However, the ban does not come into effect for 12 months.

“Social media is doing social harm to our children, and I want Australian parents to know that we have their backs,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese explained.

Age Verification for Online Search Engines in Australia?

In late June, the eSafety Commissioner registered three new codes developed by the online industry to “protect children” from violent content and pornography.

One of these new industry codes will require search engines in Australia, such as Google and Bing, to verify age online for access to content deemed unsuitable for minors.

“By no later than six months after this code comes into effect and where technically feasible and reasonably practicable, a provider of an internet search engine service must: implement appropriate age assurance measures for account holders,” the code states (pdf).

“At a minimum, such tools and settings must filter out online pornography and high-impact violence material detected in search results.”

Questions of Overreach

Shadow Minister for Communications Melissa McIntosh raised questions about whether the eSafety commissioner had gone too far with new online search engine codes.

“Requiring adults to log in to an account to browse the internet is taking the eSafety Commissioner’s power to a new level which needs to be scrutinised,” McIntosh said on July 29.

“The voices against the code cannot be ignored and whilst the intent is to protect young people from harms, it is essential that this is balanced with a person’s right to privacy and protection of their personal freedoms.”

Inman Grant said she had written to McIntosh last week.

She pointed out the codes were developed by industry and defended her role, arguing she was not overreaching at all.

“The codes that were submitted to me by the search engines are the industry’s codes. I just need to determine whether they meet appropriate community safeguards to register them. And that’s what I did, so there was no overreach here,” she said.

“I am implementing and using the powers that were given to me by parliament, and I would say if there were concerns about how the technical implementation happens, those would be questions or criticisms that would be better directed toward the industry bodies that created the codes.”