Pornhub, the world’s most popular pornography website, will deny access to all users in Florida beginning on January 1, 2025, in protest of the state’s new age verification requirements that protect children from adult content.
Florida Politics reports that Pornhub, the most trafficked pornography website worldwide, has announced that it will block access for all users located in Florida starting January 1, 2025. The decision comes as a protest against the state’s new age verification requirements imposed by HB 3, a law set to take effect at the beginning of the year.
Aylo, Pornhub’s parent company, confirmed the upcoming restrictions in an email, stating that the way Florida and many other jurisdictions have chosen to implement age verification is “ineffective, haphazard and dangerous.” The company expressed concerns over the potential risks to user safety and privacy, as the new regulations would require adult sites to collect substantial amounts of sensitive personal information.
Lawmakers behind the age verification bill, such as Rep. Chase Tramont, a Port Orange Republican and prime sponsor of the legislation, criticized Pornhub’s decision. Tramont argued that the site’s choice to shut down rather than comply with the law suggests that their target audience includes children.
Aylo defended its position, emphasizing that while it has publicly supported age verification for years, any such law must effectively protect children from accessing adult content while preserving user safety and privacy. The company pointed to the consequences of similar laws in other states, such as Louisiana, where Pornhub’s compliance led to an 80 percent drop in traffic. Aylo contends that users migrated to less reputable and unregulated sites, making the internet more dangerous for both adults and children.
As an alternative solution, Aylo advocates for age verification at the device level, such as requiring smartphone manufacturers to limit access to adult content. The company believes that the technology to achieve this already exists and calls for the political and social will to make it happen. Aylo expressed its eagerness to collaborate with the government, civil society, and tech partners to develop an effective device-based age verification solution.
However, some lawmakers remain skeptical of Pornhub’s intentions. Rep. Fiona McFarland, a Sarasota Republican, questioned the company’s sincerity in prioritizing Florida’s best interests, stating that if a company cannot abide by the state’s laws, it should not do business there.
Read more at Florida Politics here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
