Latest news with #adultcontent
CNA
3 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, XVideos investigated in EU over child protection
BRUSSELS :Adult content platforms Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos will be investigated for failing to comply with rules to protect children, EU regulators said on Tuesday, in a move that could lead to fines of as much as 6 per cent of their global annual turnover. The European Commission said the companies had not complied with the Digital Services Act, which requires them to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content on their platforms following their designation as very large online platforms in 2023. They also breached rules obliging companies to take risk assessment and mitigation measures of the negative effects on the rights of children and to prevent them from accessing adult content via age verification tools, it said. "The online space should be a safe environment for children to learn and connect. Our priority is to protect minors and allow them to navigate safely online," EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said in a statement. Pornhub owner and Cypriot group Aylo Freesites Ltd said its sites were RTA- (restricted to adults) compliant, as rated by the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection, and were strictly reserved for those of legal age. "We believe that the real solution for protecting minors and adults alike is to verify users' ages at the point of access - the users' devices - and for websites to deny or permit access to age-restricted materials based on that verification," Aylo said in an email. Stripchat, which is a subsidiary of Cypriot company Technius Ltd, did not respond to an emailed request. XNXX is owned by Czech company NKL Associates and XVideos is part of WebGroup Czech Republic. It was not immediately possible to reach those two companies. The Commission said it would drop its designation of Stripchat as a very large online platform in four months' time after its average monthly number of users fell below the DSA user threshold.
The Guardian
3 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
Pornhub and three other adult websites face EU child safety investigation
The EU executive has launched an investigation into four pornographic websites over alleged failure to prevent children from seeing adult content. After analysis of company policies, the European Commission accused Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos of failing to have effective age verification measures to stop minors accessing their content. The investigation was opened under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), a wide-ranging law to combat online harms, including disinformation, cyber-attacks, hate speech and the sale of fake goods. The DSA also includes tough provisions to protect children online, including preventing damage to mental health caused by seeing adult content. According to the commission, all four platforms had one-click self-declarations to verify age, which it deemed ineffective to prevent under-18s from viewing adult content. 'Today is a good day for minor protection online in the EU, because with the enforcement actions that we are launching … against four very large online platforms with pornographic, adult content, we are clearly showing that we mean it when it comes to the effective protection of minors under the DSA,' an EU official told reporters. There was no fixed timetable to complete the investigation, the EU official said, while stressing 'a commitment to act relatively fast on potential next steps, depending on what the reaction of the platforms will be'. The platforms could resolve the investigation by coming up with forms of age verification deemed effective by EU regulators. But if the complaint is upheld they could be fined up to 6% of global annual turnover. Under the DSA, the commission regulates platforms with more than 45 million users, such as Google, Meta and X, while national authorities in the 27 member states are responsible for those below this threshold. The commission said on Tuesday that Stripchat was no longer designated a 'very large online platform', after an appeal by the company, meaning its activities would in future be regulated by Cyprus, where its parent company, Technius Ltd, is based, rather than Brussels. The investigation into age verification tools will continue, however, as the new designation does not apply until September. Stripchat's child protection obligations remain the same. Both Technius and the parent company of Pornhub, Aylo Freesites, were approached for comment. A Brussels-based lawyer who has recently represented the parent companies of XVideos (WebGroup Czech Republic) and XNXX (NKL Associates) in EU legal proceedings was also contacted for comment.
CNA
3 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos targeted in EU investigation
BRUSSELS :Adult content platforms Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos will be investigated for suspected breaches of EU online content law, EU regulators said on Tuesday, in a move that could lead to fines of as much as 6 per cent of their global annual turnover. The European Commission said the companies had not complied with rules requiring them to put in place appropriate measures to protect minors from adult content. They also breached rules obliging companies to take risk assessment and mitigation measures of negative effects on the rights of children and to prevent them from accessing adult content via age verification tools. "The online space should be a safe environment for children to learn and connect. Our priority is to protect minors and allow them to navigate safely online," EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said in a statement. Pornhub is part of Cypriot group Aylo Freesites Ltd, XNXX is owned by Czech company NKL Associates, Stripchat is a subsidiary of Cypriot company Technius Ltd and XVideos is part of WebGroup Czech Republic. The companies were designated as very large online platforms under the Digital Services Act in 2023, which requires them to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content on their platforms. The Commission said it would drop its designation of Stripchat as a very large online platform in four months' time after its average monthly number of users fell below the DSA user threshold.
CNA
3 days ago
- General
- CNA
Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, XVideos targeted in EU investigation
BRUSSELS :Adult content platforms Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos will be investigated for suspected breaches of EU online content law, EU regulators said on Tuesday. The companies were designated as very large online platforms under the Digital Services Act (DSA) in 2023, which requires them to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content on their platforms. The European Commission said the companies have not complied with rules requiring them to put in place appropriate measures to protect minors from adult content. Separately, the EU executive said EU countries will coordinate actions against smaller pornographic platforms to protect children.
Reuters
3 days ago
- General
- Reuters
Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, XVideos targeted in EU investigation
BRUSSELS, May 27 (Reuters) - Adult content platforms Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos will be investigated for suspected breaches of EU online content law, EU regulators said on Tuesday. The companies were designated as very large online platforms under the Digital Services Act (DSA) in 2023, which requires them to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content on their platforms. The European Commission said the companies have not complied with rules requiring them to put in place appropriate measures to protect minors from adult content. Separately, the EU executive said EU countries will coordinate actions against smaller pornographic platforms to protect children.
