Australian families could soon get a clearer choice over what appears in their social media feeds. The federal government is preparing draft Digital Duty of Care laws that would require platforms to regularly offer users an option to switch off algorithmically curated recommendations and instead see posts from accounts they follow.
The proposal is especially relevant to Indian-Australian households navigating online racism, misinformation, bullying and age-inappropriate material across several languages and platforms. But it is not law yet. An exposure draft is expected to be released this week, after which the detail and parliamentary support will matter.
What the proposed social media changes would do
According to ABC News, the draft framework is expected to shift more responsibility onto social media companies. Platforms would need to identify and reduce foreseeable risks rather than relying mainly on users to report harmful material after seeing it.
The reported measures include:
- regular prompts allowing users to choose between an algorithmic feed and posts from accounts they follow;
- duties on platforms to assess and mitigate systemic online harms;
- protections concerning illegal content for adult users;
- additional attention to psychosocial harms for people under 18, including bullying and body-image content; and
- potentially substantial penalties for serious breaches.
The Australian Government’s Department of Infrastructure says the broader Digital Duty of Care concept would require online services to take “reasonable steps” to prevent foreseeable harm. It follows a review of the Online Safety Act 2021 and consultation conducted from late 2025 into 2026.
What switching off an algorithm may change
An algorithmic feed does more than arrange posts by time. It uses signals such as viewing habits, clicks, location and account information to predict what will keep a person engaged. That can be useful for discovering recipes, cricket updates, local Indian community events or Australian migration updates.
However, recommendation systems can also repeatedly promote provocative or emotionally charged material. For Indian Australians, that may include anti-migrant commentary, racial abuse, misleading visa claims or inflammatory videos presented without context.
Choosing a following-only feed could reduce unsolicited recommendations and give users more control. It would not make a platform risk-free. Harmful posts from followed accounts, private messages, scams and reshared misinformation could still appear, and the final design of any opt-out is not yet settled.
Why Indian-Australian parents should pay attention
Many migrant families use social media for valuable reasons: keeping in touch with relatives in India, finding local cultural groups, following bilingual news and helping newly arrived family members settle in Australia. Those benefits can sit alongside risks that cross languages and generations.
A teenager may encounter bullying or appearance-related content. A parent may receive a fake visa-agent advertisement. An older relative may be targeted by an impersonation scam in English, Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati or another community language. Content that exploits migration anxiety can spread quickly because recommendation systems reward attention, not necessarily accuracy.
The proposed duty is aimed at platform-level prevention, but families should not wait for legislation before reviewing their settings.
A practical family checklist
- Review feed controls now. Look for options such as “Following”, “Latest” or chronological feeds. These vary between platforms and may not fully disable recommendations.
- Reset recommendation signals. Unfollow accounts that repeatedly share abusive or unreliable material, clear watch history where appropriate and use “not interested” controls.
- Check teenagers’ privacy settings together. Discuss who can message, tag or mention them, and avoid turning the conversation into secret surveillance.
- Verify migration and government claims. Use official
.gov.auwebsites, including Home Affairs, rather than relying on reels, forwarded messages or paid agent advertisements. - Save evidence before reporting abuse. Record the username, URL, date and screenshots, but do not keep redistributing harmful content.
- Talk across languages. Make sure parents and grandparents know that urgent requests for money, identity documents or one-time codes should be independently checked.
The proposal is still subject to change
The distinction between a proposal and an enacted law is important. The exposure draft will show which services are covered, how harms are defined, how an opt-out must work and what enforcement powers the eSafety Commissioner may receive. Political parties have already expressed different views about whether the model goes far enough or risks overreach.
Families should therefore treat current headlines as an early guide, not as a new button that every platform must provide today. The Indian will monitor the draft and any amendments as it moves through consultation and parliament.
Where to get help with online harm
If there is an immediate threat to safety, call 000. The eSafety Commissioner provides reporting pathways and guidance for cyberbullying, image-based abuse and serious adult cyber abuse. Suspected online fraud can be reported through ReportCyber, while Scamwatch explains current scam patterns. For confidential crisis support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.
The practical takeaway for Indian-Australian families is simple: greater control over algorithmic feeds could be useful, but it will not replace digital literacy, careful source-checking and open family conversations. Review your settings now, agree on how to respond to harmful content, and watch the final draft rather than assuming every reported measure is settled.