Australia's digital duty-of-care bill drops ministerial powers to expand online harms
By Saloni Sinha ( October 15, 2026, 06:05 GMT | Insight) -- Australia has removed proposed powers allowing its communications minister to expand categories of harmful online content under digital duty-of-care legislation introduced in parliament on Thursday. The bill also exempts professional news and certain entertainment material from its harmful-content definitions, while requiring online platforms to proactively reduce risks to users. Communications Minister Anika Wells said the government would also consider allowing individuals to sue platforms for breaches of the duty of care, a measure not included in the current bill.Australia has dropped proposed powers that would have allowed its communications minister to expand the categories of harmful online content covered by its digital duty-of-care legislation, which was introduced in parliament on Thursday....
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