Pornhub pushes for a return to Virginia's web browsers
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Pornhub is hoping to return to Virginians' web browsers and search histories by challenging the state's age verification rules for porn sites.
Why it matters: It's been three long years since residents could directly access one of the biggest names in online pornography.
State of play: Pornhub sent a letter to more than 300 state leaders across the country this week — including Gov. Spanberger and Attorney General Jay Jones — asking for them to rethink or rescind laws that require adult website visitors to verify their age, Politico reports.
- The laws that exist now in roughly half of all states "demonstrably do not work" and effectively fail to shield the minors they were written to protect, plus they put "adults' personal data at risk," Pornhub wrote.
Flashback: Under a Virginia law that went into effect in 2023, websites that publish content harmful to minors (i.e., porn) have to verify that users are 18 or older.
- In response, PornHub blocked access to its site in Virginia, calling the state's photo ID rules unworkable, as it's done in nearly every other state with similar laws.
Reality check: Porn has remained accessible for Virginians of all ages since 2023.
- In an Axios review of active porn sites last year, roughly 65% failed to ask for age verification in the state.
- That was an improvement from the one adult website that asked Virginians for age verification a month after the law went into effect.
- And since 2023, Virginia has been one of the nation's top states for Google searches for VPN services, which let users route their internet traffic through other states or countries.
And that's kind of Pornhub's point with its letter and push for a law change.
- Instead of site-specific age verification requirements, Pornhub says lawmakers should put the responsibility on the tech giants — including Apple, Microsoft and Google — to make parental controls the default settings on their operating systems.
Yes, but: There's little indication that state lawmakers have an appetite to revisit the law.
- State Sen. Bill Stanley, who sponsored Virginia's law and was a recipient of Pornhub's letter, told RadioIQ's Brad Kutner that he stands by the legislation.
- Spanberger's office declined to comment.