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10 September 2026
On 8 September 2026, the Australian Government released an exposure draft of the Online Safety Amendment (Digital Duty of Care) Bill 2026. If passed, the legislation would significantly amend the Online Safety Act 2021 (OSA) and fundamentally reshape the regulatory landscape for online services in Australia.
The headline change is a new ‘digital duty of care’, which will replace both the Basic Online Safety Expectations (BOSE) and the existing Industry Codes and Standards. The duty would be accompanied by a range of transparency-related obligations, alongside a suite of reforms that would expand the powers of the eSafety Commissioner (“eSafety”) and significantly increase penalties for non-compliance.
Consultation is currently open, with feedback accepted until 12pm on Tuesday, 22 September 2026.