Australia’s controversial new law barring under-16s from social media is one of the toughest crackdowns yet on platforms including Facebook and TikTok as governments worldwide grasp for ways to protect children from harmful content.

The new law will deliver a message to tech companies to "clean up their act," the country's prime minister has said.

The bill, which cleared the Senate on Thursday, mandates social media companies to strengthen age verification processes to prevent children under 16 from using platforms such as Facebook, Instagram,