Two more US states have passed legislation requiring pornographic websites to verify visitors’ identification. As a result, Montana and North Carolina have been completely cut off from Pornhub’s website, joining the states of Utah, Virginia, and other states that have also been cut off. Although Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, has consistently maintained that ID verification is a privacy nightmare, many more states seem ready to enact legislation along these lines.
In the beginning of 2023, Louisiana was the first state to impose age verification requirements. While most states do not, the state has a digital driver’s license system that can be utilized for verification. This means that in order to gather user IDs and confirm they belong to the individual attempting to access pornographic content, websites like Pornhub must use third-party identity processors. Although it’s dangerous to have to give personal information to a third party, the majority of pornographic websites do just that.
Users in Montana and North Carolina can still access Pornhub’s website, but they won’t find what they’re looking for. Instead of loading any pornography in certain states, Pornhub now displays a short statement along with a video featuring performer Cherie DeVille explaining the reason the website is prohibited. “We believe that the best and most effective solution for protecting children and adults alike is to identify users by their device and allow access to age-restricted materials and websites based on that identification,” DeVille states in the clip.
The video is the same for users in other restricted states and isn’t exclusive to Montana and North Carolina. Aylo is the owner of numerous other well-known pornographic brands, including as RedTube, YouPorn, and Brazzers. Visitors are seeing the same video and statement on each of them.
Pornhub claims that the true intention of the law may be to prevent people from giving over their personal information in order to see pornographic content. Even with the state ID system, according to the website, traffic in Louisiana decreased by 80%, but that doesn’t mean people are giving up on online pornography. Similar to all the other states where Pornhub was restricted, the number of searches for VPN services has skyrocketed in Montana and North Carolina. Sadly, Pornhub’s VPN service was discontinued. Pornhub also asserts that the rule will only serve to lure users to increasingly dubious online destinations where the law is not upheld.
Although Pornhub is now doing well, if additional states follow Louisiana’s example, it may need to reevaluate. Blocking a few states is one thing, but Aylo may have to cooperate if age verification laws are passed in every state that leans to the right.