Pornhub will cease operations in five states this summer due to new laws requiring age verification on adult entertainment websites. The move is a response to recently passed laws requiring pornographic websites and other platforms containing explicit adult-only content to collect evidence of users’ age. This means that in all states, people must upload a copy of their driver’s license or other government ID or register with a third-party age verification service to use sites like Pornhub.
Pornhub said the latest exit positions are , , and . The site said it will end operations in the state in July 2024. The website was shut down and access to sites in Arkansas, Mississippi and Virginia was also blocked in response to similar state laws.
Lawmakers in these states who support age verification laws say the regulations will prevent children from viewing explicit content. For example, a Kentucky bill called pornography a “public health crisis” that has a “corrosive effect” on children.
Pornhub parent company Aylo countered that the approach taken by these laws puts users’ privacy at risk and may not actually prevent minors from viewing explicit content. After Aylo continued to operate the government-backed age verification service, Pornhub traffic in the state fell 80%.
“These people never stopped looking for porn,” Aylo said. . “They have migrated to the dark corners of the internet, where they don’t require users to verify their age, don’t follow the law, don’t take user safety seriously, and often don’t even moderate their content.” The company is a non-state device-based age verification solution that prevents minors from accessing adult-only sites.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation also raised privacy concerns about these bills, noting that no age verification method can be completely foolproof. “No one should hand over their driver’s license just to access a free website, which is why EFF opposes any legislation that would require age verification, no matter how well-intentioned,” the EFF said.
