Pornhub, other major porn platforms may have failed to protect children, EU finds
Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos breached the EU’s digital rules by exposing minors to pornographic content, according to preliminary findings from the European Commission.
The European Commission said Pornhub and others “did not diligently identify and assess the risks that their platforms pose to minors accessing their services,” thus breaching the Digital Services Act (DSA).
It said that all four platforms allow minors to access pornographic content “by a simple click confirming they are over 18,” saying that it’s not enough.
The Commission said the platforms should remedy the breaches or face fines that could reach up to 6% of their total worldwide annual turnover.
“In the EU, online platforms have a responsibility,” said Henna Virkkunen, the EU’s executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security, and democracy.
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“Children are accessing adult content at increasingly younger ages, and these platforms must put in place robust, privacy-preserving and effective measures to keep minors off their services,” she said.
The preliminary report is part of a larger investigation, and the findings are not final. The four platforms will now have the possibility to review the documents and respond to the preliminary findings.
“Asking to commit suicide”
Pornhub is owned by porn conglomerate Aylo, which in turn is owned by Canadian private equity firm Ethical Capital Partners. Stripchat is owned by Cyprus-registered Technius, while XVideos and XNXX are owned by Czech company WGCZ Holding.
Cybernews has reached out to all four for comment.
"The European Commission is asking us to commit suicide for nothing. Adding age checks on four sites out of a million does nothing to prevent minors from accessing adult content, as we know they will simply move to other, less safe sites that are completely out of reach of regulators – contrary to what the Commission claims – and will cause a massive regression and loss of control," XNXX said in a statement shared with Cybernews.
According to the European Commission’s preliminary findings, all four platforms failed to conduct a thorough assessment of their practices, even where risks were identified. Additionally, Stripchat, XVideos, and XNXX “misrepresented” their meetings with child protection organizations or didn’t consider them.
Instead, the companies focused on emphasizing business concerns, such as damage to reputation, rather than focusing on societal risks to minors, as required under the DSA.
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The DSA came into force in 2024 and requires large online platforms to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content.
In parallel to probes into Pornhub, Stripchat, XVideos, and XNXX, a coordinated action against non-compliant smaller pornographic platforms is also being carried out by national regulators in the member states, the European Commission said.
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