Age Verification
xHamster Affirms Commitment to 'Youth Media Protection' in Germany
xHamster signaled today that it is willing to work with German media authorities towards preventing minors in that country from accessing adult content.
French Senators Propose Treating Adult Content 'Like Terrorism or CSAM'
New details surfaced today about a French media regulatory agency's plan to block all major free adult sites in the country, in response to a controversial age verification law.
Local German Anti-Porn Crusader Plans to Expand Surveillance Tool to All of Europe
The local official behind the crusade for Germany to require age verification for viewing sexual content is now seeking to expand to all of Europe the use of his new AI tool, KIVI, which automatically scans all online content to determine which images are not compliant with the law.
French Court Rejects Religiously Inspired Attempt to Block Top Tube Sites
A Paris court of appeals rejected last week the attempt by local War on Porn groups, led by an extremist Catholic organization, to use France’s media authority and the courts to block the most popular adult tube sites in the country.
Progressive German Newspaper Asks for State-Funded 'Educational' Porn
Progressive German publication Taz published an opinion piece last week suggesting that state public media fund “educational” porn as part of their mandate to “protect children,” rather than attempt to censor the commercial variety.
French Regulator Initiates Action to Block 2 More Adult Tube Sites
Several weeks after targeting five leading adult tube sites, France’s media regulator ARCOM has initiated a new legal action, this time demanding that the country’s ISPs totally block MindGeek-owned sites YouPorn and RedTube over their alleged lack of enforcement of a controversial age verification mandate.
Louisiana's Anti-Porn 'Age Verification' Bill Spawns Free Speech Concerns
Reports of a novel proposed Louisiana bill that would allow any state resident to sue any company for failing to implement age verification to prevent minors from accessing “pornography” have already prompted concerns about the religious conservatives’ use of state-level "lawfare" to undermine the landmark Reno v. ACLU Supreme Court decision.
New Bill Would Let Louisiana Residents Sue Adult Sites Over Age Verification
A religious Louisiana legislator has proposed a new bill to allow state residents to sue any commercial entity for failing to implement age verification to prevent minors from accessing “content online that could be harmful to them, such as pornography."
Senators Blumenthal, Blackburn Introduce Another Controversial Online Regulation Bill: KOSA
Digital rights advocates are sounding the alarm about privacy and censorship concerns regarding the Kids Online Safety Act of 2022, recently introduced by Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee).
Cherie DeVille Pens Op-Ed on Germany's 'War on Porn'
The Daily Beast published an opinion piece by Cherie DeVille on Friday about the dangers of European legislation that could become “the first step toward kicking sex workers off the internet and banning porn entirely.”
German Regulator Who Shut Down xHamster Describes Own Mission as 'Kafkaesque'
Tobias Schmid, the obscure local bureaucrat who spearheads Germany’s War on Porn and recently led a successful movement to force ISPs to ban xHamster in the country, gave an interview last week in which he admitted he has “no clear answer” on how to make age verification effective and acknowledged his anti-porn crusade is “a bit Kafkaesque.”
UK Government Unveils Controversial 'Digital Safety Bill'
Boris Johnson’s Conservative government in the U.K. has finally unveiled its controversial “Online Safety Bill,” and introduced it in Parliament today.
UK's Online Safety Bill Criticized Over Expanding Scope
The U.K. government continues expanding the scope of a proposed Online Safety Bill, despite criticism by opponents and digital rights advocates that it is increasingly becoming an out-of-control, repressive “kitchen sink” bill.
French Government Asks Courts for Order to Block Pornhub, 4 Other Tube Sites
France’s media regulator ARCOM has gone to court to demand that the country’s ISPs enforce a total block of five specific adult tube sites — Pornhub, Tukif, xHamster, Xvideos and Xnxx — over their alleged lack of enforcement of a controversial age verification mandate.
Under Pressure From German Government, Twitter Begins Blocking Adult Content
Confirming the fears of sex workers and advocates around the world, Twitter has reportedly begun blocking German profiles that include adult content, after a local government official escalated a campaign to force the platform to implement age verification systems designed for “pornographic websites.”
UK Ministers Confirm New Age Verification Rules Target Twitter, Reddit
U.K. government officials confirmed last week that social media sites “hosting large amounts of pornographic material, such as Twitter and Reddit” would have to “introduce systems to remove adult material in the U.K., or introduce age checks to determine whether users are over 18,” The Guardian reported yesterday.
Australian Top Censor Moving Forward With Controversial Age Verification Scheme
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant, who has acknowledged having conversations with the U.S.-based, religiously-inspired anti-porn lobby NCOSE, is now “developing a roadmap to implement age verification for online pornographic sites.”
Pokmi Touts Biometrics Age Verification Solution
Pokmi’s age verification solution is the subject of a feature article in the French edition of Forbes magazine.
French Regulator Continues Threatening Tube Sites, Refuses to Provide Guidance on Age Verification
The French government's media regulation agency has said it is currently analyzing the responses of five operators of adult tube sites who were ordered to implement age verification systems, under threat of being completely blocked in the country, after the deadline to comply passed last week.
France, Germany, U.K. Move Toward Segregating Adult Content Behind 'Soft Paywall'
The French government has given another ultimatum to five adult websites to implement age verification measures by today, or face being completely blocked in the entire country.