Blame Pornhub for Britain’s Age-Check Internet Mess
The backlash against the UK’s new child safety law should also go to companies who built glitchy age-checking systems.
If love makes the world go round, then porn keeps the internet spinning. But many of the 14 million Britons who watch online porn are grappling with new requirements on sites like Pornhub to check their age. Many have signed petitions and flocked to VPNs, or virtual private networks, to evade a new British law aimed at protecting children and adults from harmful online content. Critics of Britain’s Online Safety Act call the rules bureaucratic pearl clutching and invasive, political overreach. That’s hogwash.
While the Act isn’t perfect, it is more flexible and privacy-friendly than laws elsewhere that forced adult sites to check ages. Go on Pornhub in the UK and there are several options to check you’re over 18, from giving your credit card details to sharing an email address or mobile number.1