Australia Slams YouTube, Tech Giants for Failing to Tackle Child Abuse Content

Australia’s internet safety watchdog has accused YouTube and other major tech platforms of “turning a blind eye” to child sexual abuse material, citing serious failures in monitoring and transparency.

In a report released Wednesday, the eSafety Commissioner said YouTube and Apple failed to track how many user reports they receive about abuse content or how quickly they respond. YouTube, in particular, was singled out for being unresponsive to official enquiries.

The report highlights major safety gaps across platforms including Meta, Discord, and Snap, noting failures to detect livestreams of abuse, block known content, and apply hash-matching tools consistently. Several companies, it said, had not improved despite being warned in previous years.

Following the findings, the Australian government has revoked YouTube’s exemption from a new teen social media ban, reinforcing pressure on tech firms to take stronger action.

“These companies aren’t prioritising child protection and are enabling crimes on their services,” said eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant. “No other industry would be allowed to operate like this.”

Google responded by defending its record, claiming that over 99% of child abuse content on YouTube is removed proactively before being flagged. Meta reiterated that it bans graphic content across its platforms.