Australia eyes optional social media algorithms and UK-style porn rules

Australia is weighing two significant interventions in its online safety push — making social media recommendation algorithms optional for users and adopting a UK-style ban on pornography that depicts strangulation and other forms of non-fatal choking.

Algorithm opt-out on the table

The proposals, still under active consideration by the Albanese government, would give Australians the ability to switch off the personalised content feeds that drive platforms like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. Instead of an algorithm-curated scroll, users could opt for a chronological feed showing only posts from accounts they’ve chosen to follow. It’s a deceptively simple idea with enormous implications for how billions of interactions are shaped each day.

The push follows growing concern among legislators and child safety advocates that recommendation engines are systematically funnelling vulnerable users — particularly teenagers — toward harmful content, eating disorder material and extremist communities. Australia’s eSafety Commissioner has been central to those conversations.

A government spokesperson said the consultations were at an advanced stage. “We’re committed to making sure Australians, especially young people, have real control over what they see online,” the spokesperson said.

Following the UK on violent pornography

Separately, Australia is also looking hard at Britain’s recent legislation criminalising pornographic content that depicts strangulation, sometimes called “choking porn.” The UK moved to ban such material under its Online Safety Act framework, citing evidence linking its consumption to real-world violence against women.

The numbers are stark. Research cited during UK parliamentary debates found that depictions of strangulation in mainstream pornography had risen sharply over the past decade, with some studies suggesting it now appears in roughly 57 percent of the most-viewed videos on major free-access sites.

Australian advocates have argued for years that domestic violence perpetrators increasingly cite pornography as normalising the behaviour. Still, legislation has lagged behind the evidence.

What the changes would actually mean

If both measures advance, the practical consequences would be considerable. Platforms operating in Australia would need to build user-facing controls giving genuine algorithm choice — not buried in settings menus, but front and centre. Non-compliance could trigger significant fines under Australia’s existing online safety laws.

On the pornography side, hosting or distributing strangulation content could be classified as prohibited material, subjecting platforms to takedown obligations and potential civil penalties.

But the tech industry won’t take this lying down. Meta, Google and TikTok have all previously lobbied against Australian digital regulations, and any algorithm opt-out requirement would almost certainly face legal challenges arguing interference with their core business models.

What comes next

The government is expected to release a formal consultation paper in the coming months, with any legislation unlikely to reach parliament before mid-2025. Child safety groups are already calling for the measures to go further, including default-off algorithms for all users under 18.

Australia has moved faster than many comparable democracies on digital regulation in recent years. Whether it moves fast enough here — and with enough teeth — remains the real question.