New law could allow Australians to opt out of social media algorithms

Australians could soon be given the power to switch off the algorithms deciding what appears in their social media feeds, under the Albanese Government’s next major attempt to regulate big tech.

Communications Minister Anika Wells is preparing to release an exposure draft of the government’s Digital Duty of Care legislation, which would give users greater control over algorithmically recommended content while putting new safety obligations on online platforms.

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What an algorithm off switch could look like

The ABC has reported the proposed system would regularly prompt users to choose whether they want to continue receiving algorithmically recommended content or instead see posts from accounts they have chosen to follow.

However, the precise mechanics remain unresolved. Wells said on Monday that the exposure draft was yet to be released and stopped short of confirming whether personalised algorithms would be switched on by default with an opt-out, or switched off until users actively opt in.

“I definitely want Australians to have more choice over their feeds than what they currently have, and I want big tech to respect that choice,” Wells said.

“And if they don't respect that choice, I want big tech to suffer big fines.”

Recommender systems are central to platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, selecting and ordering content based on signals including a user’s behaviour and interests.

In a May position statement, the eSafety Commissioner said social media platforms generally prioritise engagement when presenting content algorithmically, while those systems rarely distinguish between positive and negative engagement. It recommended platforms give users greater control over algorithm settings and improve transparency.

Digital Duty of Care goes further than feeds

The algorithm proposal sits inside a broader Digital Duty of Care framework designed to shift more responsibility for preventing online harm onto platforms themselves.

The government has been developing the framework following a recommendation from the statutory review of the Online Safety Act 2021. The proposed duty would require online services to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harms rather than relying primarily on action after harmful material appears.

The ABC has reported the exposure draft would require platforms to identify and mitigate risks, with illegal content among the harms covered for adults and additional psychosocial harms, including bullying and body image content, considered for users under 18.

Wells rejected suggestions the approach amounted to government censorship in an interview with Nine's Today.

“This isn’t about censorship. This is about identifying risks or making big tech identify the risks on their own platform and making big tech mitigate against those risks on their platform,” she said.

The ABC has reported breaches could attract penalties exceeding $100 million. Wells has publicly promised “significant fines”, arguing tech companies should face safety expectations comparable with other industries operating in Australia.

The fight over opt-in versus opt-out

While the government is promising greater choice, the question of who has to make the first move is emerging as a significant political fight.

The Greens are pushing for personalised recommendation algorithms to be opt-in, meaning users would receive a non-personalised feed by default and have to actively choose algorithmic recommendations.

Teach Us Consent founder and executive director Chanel Contos has also argued for an opt-in model. Her proposal would see users initially receive chronological posts from accounts they follow, rather than a feed personalised according to their behaviour.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has meanwhile raised concerns about potential censorship and said the Coalition wants parents to have greater control over what children see online.

What it could mean for media and advertisers

For advertisers and publishers heavily dependent on social distribution, one crucial detail is still missing: exactly which recommendation systems an off switch would cover.

Wells has not yet detailed whether the proposed user controls would be confined to organic and recommended content or have any direct consequences for the systems used to rank and target paid advertising.

If significant numbers of Australians choose less personalised feeds, the way users discover creators, publishers and branded content could change with them.

The proposal would add another layer to Australia’s increasingly interventionist approach to social platforms following the introduction of the under-16 social media minimum age rules in December 2025.

The exposure draft of the Digital Duty of Care is expected this week, with its release set to provide the first definitive answer on how far Australia intends to go in letting users take control of their feeds.