Preexisting Teen Accounts Evade Age Bans

When governments ban minors from social platforms, accounts created before the law often remain active and accessible, because platforms are slow or unwilling to purge them and teens reuse parent credentials or anonymizing tools. That persistence can swamp the intended effects of age legislation and create a durable compliance gap. — If pre‑existing accounts persist, age‑ban laws may be performative and shift the policy debate toward enforcement mechanisms and platform liability rather than the nominal ban itself.