The UK intends to make age check mandatory for pornographic websites

The British government has endorsed criteria to prohibit online pornographic access. Thereby compelling all websites that provide it to authorize that their users are over the age of 18. The draft legislation is a part of the UK’s impending Online Safety bill. This might require users of pornographic websites to prove their age. The proof will be either by using a credit card or a third-party age verification service. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport put out an email statement. It claimed that sites will have to implement “robust checks” to guarantee that users are 18.

Penalty: 10% of the site’s annual global turnover

If pornographic websites do not accept, they could face a penalty of up to 10% of their annual global turnover. They might temporarily be off in the UK. Not only this, but their owners will also face strict repercussions. The UK attempted to institute proof of age inspections for internet porn in 2019, however, the plan was shelved due to privacy concerns, administrative improprieties, and challenges implementing the sophisticated system. By formulating porn sites into the purview of the Online Safety Bill, the administration would assess a legal responsibility on them to curb underage access, according to the DCMS. This will further magnify what is already a very extensive draft of legislation that the government disclosed in May last year.

The bill’s preliminary emphasis was on a variety of “harms” concerning the content. However, child safety proponents debated that eliminating actual pornography from the proposed lawful obligation of care would jeopardize the entire system. Interestingly, the administration seems to approve.

Digital Minister Chris Philp said: “It is too easy for children to access pornography online. Parents deserve the peace of mind that their children are safe online from seeing things no child should see. We are now strengthening the Online Safety Bill so it applies to all porn sites in order to ensure we achieve our aim of making the internet a safer place for children.”

However, companies that “use or construct” age confirmation technology will have to comply with UK data protection legislation. Otherwise, the Information Commissioner’s Office may take enforcement trials against them. In the next few months, lawmakers will vote on the bill. Last week, the administration disclosed that online platforms such as Meta Platforms Inc. would be compelled to ascertain how they curb hazardous content from circulating. 

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