OMM Redaksiyası
“Pornhub” has restored access in Australia, eight months after withdrawing from the market over the country’s age-verification rules. The site is available only to adults using “Apple” devices who have confirmed their age through the company’s Australian verification process, the BBC reported.
Parent company “Aylo” said on Wednesday it was restoring access for “eligible adult users in Australia”. Vice-president of brand and community Alex Kekesi said verified users would receive the site’s standard adult experience.
Australia introduced stricter rules in March requiring users to prove they are over 18 to access adult content, including pornography, R-rated video games and sexually explicit AI chatbots. The online safety regulator said the changes were intended to protect children, with platforms facing fines for breaches.
When it left the country, “Aylo” said the requirements would not protect children and could create data-privacy risks, while potentially pushing users towards non-compliant platforms.
“Apple” has recently introduced age checks in Australia, after rolling out similar measures in the UK. “Aylo” said the company had “set a benchmark” by enabling child-safety features by default unless device owners confirm they are adults.
Kekesi said device-based checks could reduce the need for adults to provide personal information to multiple apps and websites. She also said default safety settings could make virtual private networks less useful for bypassing age checks by making a user appear to be connecting from another country.
Critics of age-verification rules have raised concerns about privacy and the possibility that users could evade checks using methods such as facial recognition, digital IDs or credit card details.
