After years of imbroglio, the porn site giant Aylo announces the imminent blocking of its Pornhub, Youporn, and Redtube sites. The axe will fall tomorrow afternoon, but rumors have been circulating within the company for some time. The culprit is the recent regulations that came into force, which require drastic verification of the majority of Internet users. Faced with a situation deemed insoluble, the company preferred to take the lead, refusing to "compromise your privacy with measures that, paradoxically, fail to effectively protect minors."
This dramatic decision, accompanied by a tense exchange between the company and the French government, has reshuffled the cards for the pornography industry on a European scale.
France at attention
For years, France has strengthened its legislative arsenal to combat the exposure of minors to pornographic content. With 2.3 million young people accessing pornographic sites monthly, including more than a third of teenagers aged 12 to 17 visiting Pornhub, the urgency was clear. The SREN law of May 21, 2024 gave Arcom powers to sanction and block sites that do not comply with the age verification requirement.
The technical framework developed by Arcom, in collaboration with the CNIL, imposes strict requirements including a “double anonymity” system intended to protect privacy while effectively blocking access for minors. This French approach is intended to be pioneering, favoring direct accountability of platforms rather than device-level solutions.
Until now, tolerance has applied. Some platforms had already been sanctioned, and the deadline was approaching for both the hosts and the sites concerned. Rather than patiently awaiting a sanction from Arcom, Aylo preferred to pull the rug out from under legislators' feet by blocking his own platforms.
What is double anonymity?
After having floated the idea of verification by selfie, identity card, or AgeVerif certificate, the project to block pornographic sites for minors is stalling. While the verification processes implemented until now posed serious privacy and data protection issues, double anonymity, the only method approved so far by Arcom, will be based on a certificate of majority, which can be provided upon request by “a telecom operator, a digital identity provider, or any other organization capable of certifying a person’s majority.”
In concrete terms, the organization providing the certificate of majority will not know the purpose for which it is required. For its part, the site on which the certificate is used will not have access to the person’s identity. With this method, the government hopes to successfully implement a reliable authentication method for adults, without compromising the right to privacy.
Aylo’s position
Aylo justifies its blocking decision with several technical and ethical arguments. The company disputes the effectiveness of website-based age verification solutions, calling them ineffective and dangerous for user privacy. First, the group believes that the age verification solutions imposed by France are “ineffective and dangerous.” In a statement, Alex Kekesi, the group’s vice president, claims that these devices expose user data to leaks or hacks, without preventing minors from accessing content via VPNs or other unregulated sites. The fact is, he’s not wrong: despite all the goodwill of French regulators, it remains very easy to circumvent court orders.
As an alternative solution, Aylo advocates local age verification, which would be entrusted to Apple, Google, and Microsoft. This approach would centralize responsibility among three major players, according to them, reducing the risks of mass data collection. On this point in particular, the debate remains open, but it is far from being so simplistic.
Finally, the group denounces a lack of dialogue with the French authorities, despite previous consultations. Contacted this week, Solomon Friedman, representative of the fund that owns Aylo, accuses the government of favoring "symbolic" measures over pragmatic solutions.
The government's response
Minister Clara Chappaz adopted an uncompromising tone in her official response. The government refuted Aylo's arguments point by point, emphasizing the existence of "dozens of proven, robust, and simple solutions" for age verification. Faced with the liberticidal arguments, the government insists on the urgency of protecting minors: 35% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 access Pornhub every month. Economically, France represents the second largest market in the world for the X-rated site, with 7 million daily visitors. By leaving this lucrative market, Aylo is taking a financial risk, but above all, it hopes to influence current European regulations and win over Internet users. The debate remains complex. The heart of the conflict lies in the contradictory assessment of technological risks. Aylo denounces the “hundreds of thousands of sensitive personal data collected” by verification systems, fearing massive hacks. The French government, supported by the CNIL, assures that its technical framework imposes “highly protective requirements” for users. Each side is defending its own interests, and this divergence reveals a broader issue regarding the balance between security and privacy in the digital ecosystem. The double anonymity solutions proposed by Arcom aim to reconcile these imperatives, but their practical effectiveness remains debated.
The French government, for its part, is banking on the ripple effect: as other platforms comply with the requirements, Aylo could be forced to reverse its position to preserve its European market share. As in the United States, the company could also be forced to make similar decisions at the European level. France's pioneering approach could serve as a model or, on the contrary, fuel a debate on the harmonization of European standards for the protection of minors online.
Significant security risks
Still, Aylo's strategy carries risks. French users could turn to competitors who are already compliant, or on the contrary, clandestine ones. In a statement, Alex Kekesi, the group's vice president, claims that these devices expose user data to leaks or hacks, without preventing minors from accessing content via VPNs or other unregulated sites. The fact is, he's not wrong: despite all the goodwill of French regulators, it remains very easy to circumvent court orders.
Ultimately, the big winners remain VPNs, which have seen their popularity explode since the blocking was announced.
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