As you're likely aware, your local officials have mandated that we confirm your age before granting you access to our website.
This requirement not only restricts adults' right to access protected speech, but it also fails to meet strict scrutiny standards by using the most limiting and inefficient methods to supposedly safeguard minors.
While we prioritize safety and compliance, requiring identification each time you visit an adult site is not a practical solution for online protection and, in fact, could endanger both minors and your privacy.
Imposing age verification without a way to enforce it universally leaves platforms with the option to comply or not, resulting in hundreds of thousands of sites remaining accessible without safeguards.
We've observed in other regions that similar bills have not succeeded in protecting minors, driving users from the few compliant sites to many more that lack safety protocols. Few platforms have the robust Trust and Safety measures we currently have. To truly protect minors and ensure privacy, legislation must apply to all platforms offering adult content.
Your local age verification law, unfortunately, is ineffective, poorly structured, and hazardous. It won't protect children and will hinder content creators from sharing legal adult content and their intended messages.
User safety remains our top priority. We believe the most effective way to safeguard both minors and adults is to verify users’ ages on their devices, granting or restricting access based on that verification.
We urge all adult websites to adhere to the law. Until a more effective solution is in place, we’ve made the difficult choice to temporarily block access to our site in your region. This action aligns with legal compliance, but we hope governments worldwide will create laws that better protect user security and privacy.
We encourage you to:
- Learn about device-based age verification methods that enhance online safety while safeguarding privacy.
- Reach out to your representatives and advocate for device-based verification solutions that improve internet safety without compromising privacy.
Device-Based Age Verification involves using personal information to verify age at an authorized retailer, locally on a device, or through a network controlled by the device manufacturer or OS provider. This method could include blocking content, disabling browsing permissions, or other restrictions, preventing access to age-restricted content unless age is verified. Implementing this requires cooperation from manufacturers and operating system providers.