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Starting January 1, 2025, residents of Florida will lose access to Pornhub, the world's most visited adult content platform.
This measure, announced by Pornhub's parent company, Aylo, responds to the implementation of law HB3, signed by Governor Ron DeSantis, which establishes strict requirements for age verification on websites offering content classified as "harmful to minors." This entails providing personal data to verify age.
Pornhub has strongly criticized this legislation, calling it invasive and dangerous to user privacy.
Since the announcement of the HB3 law, Pornhub has started issuing warnings to users in Florida who access its website. In these messages, the platform informs users about the impending loss of access and criticizes the provisions of the law, highlighting that the age verification requirements pose a threat to privacy.
“Did you know that your government wants you to present your driver's license before being able to access PORNHUB? As crazy as it sounds, it's true. […] We don't want minors accessing our site, and we believe that preventing this is important. However, compromising everyone's privacy won't achieve that,” the message states.
According to the company, the law will not only fail to achieve its goals of protecting minors but could also have a negative impact on Internet safety for both adults and children.
What is the HB3 law?
The HB3 law aims to protect minors by regulating access to social media and adult content on the Internet.
Although it does not explicitly mention the word "pornography," the text of the law defines as "material harmful to minors" anything that: "appeals to lustful interest," offensively represents or describes sexual conduct, and lacks literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.
The regulations state that websites featuring this type of content must implement age verification systems that require users to prove they are 18 years or older by presenting official documents such as a driver's license.
Platforms that do not comply will face fines of up to $50,000 per violation and may be subject to civil lawsuits with compensations of up to $10,000 for damages.
Additionally, the law prohibits children aged 14 and 15 from creating accounts, uploading content, or consuming material on social media without the consent of their parents or guardians.
Although the measure aims to protect minors, it has been widely criticized for its implications for privacy and access to online content.
Pornhub responds with restrictions in Florida
Pornhub has directed its users to an editorial written by its marketing director, Alexzandra Kekesi, as well as to a three-minute explanatory video on YouTube, which presents safer alternatives for age verification, such as device-based systems.
Kekesi argues that, while the company supports the protection of minors, implementing laws like HB3 is counterproductive
"The way many jurisdictions have chosen to implement age verification is ineffective, random, and dangerous. [...] These measures shift traffic from responsible platforms that comply with regulations to illegal and unregulated sites, creating a more hazardous environment for everyone."
According to Kekesi, the consequences of this legislation could include increased access to websites that do not verify age or moderate content, leading to "a less secure internet with serious additional risks to privacy."
Similar legislations in other states
Pornhub's decision in Florida is not an isolated case.
The platform has restricted access in another 12 states that have passed similar laws, including Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Louisiana, and Indiana.
In Louisiana, where similar legislation took effect in July 2023, Pornhub implemented an age verification system that resulted in an 80% drop in traffic.
However, according to Aylo, this did not reduce the consumption of pornography; instead, it drove users to "darker corners of the internet" where "users are not asked to verify their age, laws are not enforced, and often, content is not even moderated."
The spokesperson for Aylo noted that these migrations increase the risks of exposure to unsafe and unregulated materials, as well as compromising online safety for both adults and minors.
The Free Speech Coalition is suing the law HB3
The Free Speech Coalition, an organization that represents the interests of the adult entertainment industry, filed a challenge against HB3 in the Northern District Court of Florida.
The executive director of the organization, Alison Boden, argued that laws like HB3 impose unnecessary barriers for adults seeking access to legal content
"These laws create a substantial burden for adults who wish to access legal sites without fear of surveillance. (...) In practice, they have become state censorship, creating a massive chilling effect for those who speak out or engage in matters of sex or sexuality."
The organization also noted that it has filed similar lawsuits against laws in other states, such as Tennessee, Texas, and Utah. In the case of Texas, the lawsuit is set to reach the Supreme Court in January 2025, which could set a national precedent.
The debate between privacy and regulation
Although Pornhub and its parent company, Aylo, have publicly supported age verification as a measure to protect minors, they criticize current regulations for compromising user privacy and pushing traffic towards unregulated platforms.
According to Aylo, "in practice, these laws have only made the Internet more dangerous for adults and children."
The HB3 and other similar laws have sparked a broader debate on how to balance the protection of minors with the privacy rights of adults.
While supporters of these regulations argue that they are essential for creating a safer digital environment, critics warn about the negative impact on digital rights and freedom of expression.
The importance of Pornhub in the digital ecosystem
Pornhub, ranked as the nineteenth most visited domain in the world, plays a significant role in the debate over Internet regulation. According to data from Similar Web, it is the most visited adult content platform globally.
However, its history is not free of controversy. In 2020, an investigation by The New York Times revealed the presence of non-consensual content related to sex trafficking on the site, prompting the company to remove millions of videos and restrict uploads to verified users.
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