Dozens of porn sites used by 9 million Brits face Ofcom probe in first major investigation since new age checks started
XXX PROBE Dozens of porn sites used by 9 million Brits face Ofcom probe in first major investigation since new age checks started
SOME 34 porn sites are under investigation over concerns whether they're following strict new UK age checks.
Media regulator Ofcom has announced its first major probe since the Online Safety Act was introduced last week.
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New rules started last week after years of planning
Credit: Getty
Some 6,000 porn sites have complied with the changes, which blocks users unless they submit a live selfie or share their ID.
The move is designed to protect children from accessing inappropriate material online.
Ofcom says it is looking into compliance of four companies, which collectively run 34 pornography sites.
They're estimated to attract more than nine million Brits every month.
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"We have opened formal investigations into whether the following providers have highly effective age checks in place to protect children from encountering pornography across 34 websites: 8579 LLC, AVS Group Ltd, Kick Online Entertainment S.A. and Trendio Ltd," Ofcom said.
"These companies have been prioritised based on the risk of harm posed by the services they operate and their user numbers."
Platforms that fail to comply with the rules face fines or could be banned from the UK entirely.
The measures triggered a surge in VPN downloads as some try to get around the block.
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VPNs - which are used as legal privacy tools to disguise a person's location - still dominate the top of the Apple App Store today.
The regulator has admitted that there's no way to stop people from using VPNs.
Britain BANS 'dangerous' porn trend to help tackle violence against women
Tech Secretary Peter Kyle recently ruled out banning VPNs, saying "adults should get behind the age verification system".
Ofcom said it expected to make further enforcement announcements in the coming months.
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"Where we identify compliance failures, we can require platforms to take specific steps to come into compliance," bosses said.
"We can also impose fines of up to £18 million or 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue, whichever is greater.
"Where appropriate, in the most serious cases, we can seek a court order for business disruption measures, such as requiring payment providers or advertisers to withdraw their services from a platform, or requiring internet service providers to block access to a site in the UK."
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