Several adult content platforms including Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos are facing allegations of violating European Union regulations for allowing minors to access explicit content on their websites, as announced by EU regulators on Thursday. This breach of rules may result in substantial fines for the platforms.
The charges stem from a thorough 10-month investigation under the EU’s Digital Services Act, which mandates prominent online platforms to take stronger actions against illegal and harmful content.
Henna Virkkunen, the EU tech chief, emphasized the importance of implementing robust, privacy-preserving, and effective measures by these platforms to prevent minors from accessing adult content at increasingly younger ages.
If found guilty of breaching the Digital Services Act, companies could face fines of up to six percent of their global annual turnover.
The European Commission, responsible for enforcing the act, criticized the companies for lacking objective and thorough risk assessment methodologies regarding children accessing their services.
The Commission accused Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos of prioritizing their reputations over addressing societal risks posed to minors.
The regulator also raised concerns about the companies’ self-declaration tool, allowing users to confirm their age with a simple click to access the platforms, which was deemed ineffective in preventing minors from accessing the content.
The Commission urged Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos to implement privacy-preserving age verification measures to shield children from harmful content.
Snapchat Faces Scrutiny
Furthermore, the EU’s executive commission announced a formal investigation into Snapchat under the Digital Services Act on Thursday. The probe aims to address concerns that the platform is inadequately protecting children from risks such as exposure to child predators or recruitment by criminals.
Although Snapchat requires users to be at least 13 years old to use the platform, the Commission doubts the effectiveness of the company’s “age assurance” system in preventing young users from accessing the platform.
The Commission highlighted the inadequacies in the system’s verification process for users under 17 to ensure an age-appropriate experience and expressed concerns about adults posing as minors due to ineffective age-checking systems.
In response, Snapchat stated that it has cooperated fully with the Commission and is committed to meeting the DSA’s stringent safety standards, emphasizing the priorit
