Since Friday July 25, porn sites across the UK require age checks for users to access saucy video content.
That means they are legally obligated to ask for your ID or even your credit rating upon logging in, landmark methods that verify users’ ages for the very first time.
Online firms that create and publish their own pornography were already required to protect children from it, and multiple sites streaming adult content introduced age checks ahead of the deadline.
The most visited pornographic service in the UK, PornHub, confirmed to Ofcom that it’ll be complying with the checks, as have BoyfriendTV, Cam4, FrolicMe, inxxx, Jerkmate, LiveHDCams, MyDirtyHobby, RedTube, Streamate, Stripchat, Tube8, and YouPorn.
New research from Ofcom has revealed the harrowing extent to which UK children are accessing illicit content online, with 8% of those aged between eight and 14 visiting a porn site or app over the course of a month.
Shockingly, 3% of eight to nine-year-olds did the same; the youngest age group recorded in the study.
So, what do the new rules mean in practice? And how are they actually being enforced across porn websites?
Why are these new rules being introduced? What is the UK’s Online Safety Act?
The new rules are looking to protect children from accessing harmful pornographic content online.
In the digital age, porn is directly impacting how children learn about sex, and this is shaping not only their understanding of consent and relationships, but their mental health, too.
A previous study from Barnado’s found that children are participating in acts that they have seen in pornographic videos, despite feeling both ‘uncomfortable’ and ‘scared.’
Research from the Government’s Equalities Office has also detected ‘substantial evidence’ of an association between minors using pornography and them later developing harmful attitudes and behaviours towards women and girls.
How are the new rules enforced?
Ofcom has said that monitoring the new rules is a ‘priority’ for the body, and should any porn company fail to comply, fines can – and will – be issued.
These can total either up to £18,000,000 or 10% of the company’s worldwide revenue, whichever is the greater figure.
Businesses aren’t simply able to ignore these penalties either, as Ofcom has the power to apply for a court order which would effectively prevent it from operating in the UK.
What techniques are being used? And how accurate are they?
Ofcom has said that the checks can include facial age estimation, open banking, digital identity services, credit card age checks, email-based age estimation, mobile network operator age checks, and photo ID-matching.
‘An AI-powered neural network scans a face and creates a 3D map to analyse movement, facial features, lighting, and other key signs of reality,’ Pavel Goldman Kalaydin, head of artificial intelligence and machine learning at Sumsub, tells Metro, though he notes that while accuracy is improving, it isn’t always 100%.
‘This same process can be used to estimate age, by looking at specific features and tell-tale signs of age, like crow’s feet.’
Deepfakes are also making it increasingly easy for illegitimate users to access content, and layering AI facial recognition technology with extra measures like photo ID analysis is improving accuracy.
‘Using photo ID or passport analysis as the additional verification check alongside AI age analysis is a strong combination,’ he adds.
‘Cross-referencing an uploaded picture of one of these documents with a selfie and AI age verification is simple for users – trying to get access would find it much harder to make all three identical.’
What if people use fake IDs or deepfakes?
Ofcom is also having to grapple with the issue of fraud, and the techniques used today are growing in sophistication by the minute.
As Pavel adds, deepfake images and videos are a continuing problem, having increased by 900% year-on-year in early 2024 alone.
‘These are often combined with fake identity documents – synthetic document fraud – where totally artificial passports, driving licences, and other documents are used to bypass verification,’ he said.
Hours after the law came into effect, users were reporting they were able to bypass certain software using gaming avatars which can be manipulated to perform actions requested by the app.
What will the credit card check be used for?
In the UK, credit card companies are mandated to check that applicants are over 18 before issuing them with an account, and so, the idea is that this will effectively be used to verify a person’s age when they’re attempting to access pornography.
As the user will provide their credit card details, the payment processor can send a request to check that the card is valid to the bank or business that issued it. Once this is approved, this can be used as evidence that the individual is over 18.
How can users ensure their information is kept private?
Ofcom has assured its users that the age checks can be done both ‘effectively’ and ‘safely,’ but ‘as with everything you do online, you should exercise a degree of caution and judgement when giving over personal information’.
It’ll be working closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office and, where it has concerns that a provider hasn’t complied with data protection law, it may refer the case to the ICO.
It’s also likened the online pornography age checks to those used in the offline world to buy age-restricted goods, like cigarettes and alcohol.
‘Age checks to access online pornography are just the same,’ the guidance argues, adding that the measures will ‘help stop children from encountering pornography online, in the same way that a child should not be able to simply walk into a shop and buy a pornographic DVD or magazine’.
Can I use a VPN to skip the age check?
Proton VPN, a leading provider of virtual private networks that mask the IP address to create a more secure connection, reported a 1,400% uptick in signups in the minutes after the law came into effect.
The firm said in a post on X: ‘Unlike previous surges, this one is sustained, and is significantly higher than when France lost access to adult content.’
But according to Pavel, it’s not possible to skip the rules using a VPN either.
As he notes, an underage user would still need to present their ID document for verification, rendering a VPN completely useless.
‘Many sites are already using third-party verification providers – whose advanced “device intelligence” checks can detect the use of things like VPN and incognito mode, as well as other signs of suspicious activity,’ he concludes.
What about OnlyFans?
A spokesperson for OnlyFans told Metro that the company has had ‘highly effective’ age assurance policies in place since 2021.
They added that it’ll be complying with ‘all necessary duties under the Online Safety Act as a user-to-user service.’
Some examples of the measures it already employs include asking customers for their bank details, a valid government photo ID, a standalone selfie, a selfie while holding their photo ID, or their social media handles. In the US, users might be asked to provide their Social Security number.
However, it’s worth noting that in March, Ofcom fined the provider of OnlyFans, Fenix International Limited, £1.05 million after it failed to ‘respond to formal requests for information about its age assurance measures on the platform.’
At the time, the company claimed that it had set its challenge age for its facial age estimation technology at 23 years old, but Ofcom later learned that this had actually been set at 20.
Metro has contacted PornHub, OnlyFans, BoyfriendTV, Cam4, FrolicMe, inxxx, Jerkmate, LiveHDCams, MyDirtyHobby, RedTube, Streamate, Stripchat, Tube8, and YouPorn for comment. At the time of writing, only Jerkmate, PornHub, and OnlyFans have responded.
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