Brussels forces porn site Xnxx to strengthen controls to prevent access by minors

The Xnxx pornographic website should strengthen controls in the European Union to prevent minors from accessing its content, including through age verification toolsThe reason is that Brussels decided this Wednesday to include Xnxx in its list of very large platforms for exceed the 45 million threshold of monthly users in the EUas established by the Digital Services Law.

Three other websites with pornographic content are already on this list: Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos. The Digital Services Act imposes stricter obligations on these large platforms than on the rest. Xnxx now has four months (i.e. until mid-November 2024) to comply with the new requirements.

In addition to strengthening age verification mechanisms, it will have to implement protocols to address the risks associated with the dissemination of illegal content online, such as child sexual abuse; and also content that affects fundamental rights, such as the non-consensual exchange of intimate material online or pornography deepfake.

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On June 13, the Commission already sent requests for information to Pornhub, Stripchat and Xvideos, asking these platforms to facilitate more detailed clarifications on the measures they have adopted against the amplification of illegal content and gender-based violence, as well as on their age verification mechanisms.

In case of non-compliance, the EU Digital Services Act provides for the imposition of fines. Fines of up to 6% of turnover of the company. Brussels may also apply periodic penalties of up to 5% of the average daily global turnover for each day of delay in compliance with corrective measures, interim measures and commitments.

The actions of the Community Executive regarding the large pornographic platforms coincide with the debate in Spain on the Digital Wallet promoted by the Government of Pedro Sánchez to control access of minors to porn.

However, The Digital Services Act shifts all responsibility to the platforms themselveswhich are required to adopt specific measures to protect the rights of minors, including age verification and parental control tools, as well as tools to help minors report abuse or obtain help.