A federal bill that proposes an age verification process to visit porn sites could see Pornhub blocking its access in Canada.
Bill S-210, known as the Protecting Young Persons from Exposure to Pornography Act, proposes to make it an offence for organizations to make sexually explicit material available to any individual who is under 18 years of age.
It would allow a “designated enforcement authority” to take steps to prevent these materials from being made available to youth and proposes a fine of between $250,000 to $500,000 if companies fail to comply.
The contents of the bill do not provide exact details about specific age verification methods sites would need to implement, but notes the technology should be used to maintain user privacy and protect personal information and should destroy that information once the verification process is completed.
The bill was first introduced in the Senate by Independent Senator Julie Miville-DechĆŖne in November 2021 and is currently at consideration in committee in the House of Commons after it passed its second reading in December 2023.
Canadians have shared their thoughts about the bill, with some saying it’s necessary and others noting privacy concerns.
“This bill is a massive invasion of privacy that will affect far more than Pornhub and other porn sites,” said one person on X.
this bill is a massive invasion of privacy that will affect far more than pornhub and other porn sites.
ā Armageddon Speaking (@ArmageddonSpeak) February 19, 2024
There is no way to effectively enforce it anyways.
It’s a waste of time on both sides.Netnanny didn’t even pan out in the end.
And now you’ve got VPN’s and all sorts of ways around it.
ā The OFF-GRIDiot (@Radios4Freedom) February 19, 2024
“Excellentā¦block away! What a waste of time and money,” said another.
Excellentā¦block away! What a waste of time and money.
ā Catriona Blain (@catriona_b) February 19, 2024
Incredibly rare Canadian W
ā Hannah (@lilprairiegrl) February 20, 2024
Oh look, another problem that didnāt need solving but the Canadian government is spending time and resources towards it.
Thereās much more serious issues to be addressed than this.
ā SportsVerdict (@thesportverdict) February 19, 2024
In a statement to Daily Hive, Aylo ā Pornhub’s parent company ā said its top priority is to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content.
“We have no interest in minors accessing content intended for adults. We want to ensure the safety of children online, and we all have a responsibility in this,” said a spokesperson.
Aylo noted that it is willing to work with governments and industry to create “clear, enforceable, and effective device-level age verification.
However, it noted if a jurisdiction chooses to implement laws and regulations “that put user safety in jeopardy, are implemented inequitably, or do not effectively protect children from age-inappropriate material online, the safest decision for the public is to pull our platforms from those jurisdictions.”
Aylo argued that age verification regulations implemented around the world have been ineffective so far.
“In US states where we have introduced age verification or removed access to our platform, we have seen a surge in searches for other, often unregulated adult sites with no trust and safety or moderation processes,” stated the company, adding that users can find ways to torrent illegal sites that do not ask for age verification.
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