Ruddick said the Digital Freedom Project launched its High Court bid after Google failed to follow through on its threat to sue over the teen social media ban.
Ruddick, a member of the NSW Libertarian Party, said the intention to protect children online was the right one, but that the ban would only exacerbate the problem.
“Like many cases of prohibition and censorship in history, it will have unintended side effects,” he said. “The kids will still access social media, but it’ll be an underground social media without parental supervision. So that’s the biggest issue. The second-biggest issue is we are fearful this is the beginning of more censorship.”
Ruddick said it should be parents’ responsibility to be aware of what their children were doing online and educate them about the harms of social media.
“This is paramount in today’s world, that kids are looked after online, but … the parents cannot delegate it to bureaucrats. It is a recipe for disaster,” he said.
Minister for Communications Anika Wells said on Wednesday the government was committed to the ban.
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“We will not be intimidated by threats. We will not be intimidated by legal challenges. We will not be intimidated by big tech,” she said in parliament.
“Despite the fact that we are receiving threats and legal challenges by people with ulterior motives, the Albanese Labor government remains steadfastly on the side of parents, and not of platforms.”
The Digital Freedom Project laid out its argument in a statement on Wednesday.
“The High Court has long held that our Australian Constitution implies a freedom to communicate on political and government matters. In this case, the government’s purpose – protecting children from demonstrable online harms – is legitimate and serious. But a measure is only constitutional if, in substance, it burdens political communication no more than reasonably necessary to achieve that purpose,” the group said.
“The [social media minimum age ban] blocks a whole class of Australians … from the very online spaces where news is consumed, representatives are contacted, campaigns are organised and public debate occurs.”
Social media companies face fines of up to $49.5 million if they fail to take “reasonable steps” to block teens from platforms using age-assurance technology, though the eSafety Commission has not mandated how they should do so.
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