France has recently implemented an age verification law affecting websites hosting adult content. Websites such as PornHub have simply blocked people in France from accessing its website rather than comply.
Texas, Utah, Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Georgia, the United Kingdom and Australia, have also implemented age verification laws.
Canada almost did, but the bill was dropped, no doubt they’ll be looking into it again at some point.
Consequences of non-compliance in France:
Fines of up to 150,000 euros or 2% of worldwide turnover (excluding VAT), whichever is higher, and potential criminal charges.
Consequences of non-compliance in America:
Fines and potential liability for damages to minors exposed to harmful content.
- Illinois: Proposed legislation includes the possibility of criminal charges
- Indiana: Proposed legislation includes the possibility of criminal charges
- Texas: While currently, violators will not be subject to criminal charges, there have been significant fines imposed on websites for non-compliance, such as the case against XHamster and Chaturbate, which faced fines of $1.67 million and $1.78 million, respectively.
Consequences of non-compliance in the UK:
Fines up to £18 million or 10% of global turnover, whichever is higher. Senior managers can also face criminal charges for ignoring Ofcom's requests or failing to meet child safety duties.
Consequences of non-compliance in Australia:
Fines of up to $31.9 million. So far, no mention of criminal charges.
It’s unclear how these laws apply to people who upload adult images to blogs. Is Blogger responsible for verifying peoples ages with government issued I.D, facial estimation software, and / or credit card information, or am I? And how do these laws apply to other websites and uploaders to sites such as Reddit, DeviantArt and Itaku?
At the moment it seems unclear.
What is clear, is that if a website can be accessed by people living in those places. Regardless of where the website is hosted, or where you are living. You can face fines and potential criminal charges for non-compliance with the law.
This is affecting everyone, worldwide. For now, I’m going to take a break. At least until things become clearer.