The U.K.’s communications regulator fined the porn company 8579 LLC on Monday £1.35 million ($1.82 million) for not verifying user ages.
Under the U.K.’s Online Safety Act, sites hosting porn must use rigorous age assurance methods to ensure that minors cannot access the content.
Hidden, a TikTok-like platform operated by sex workers, is launching as OnlyFans is implementing background checks for performers and expanding beyond adult content.
The company sent letters to Apple, Google, and Microsoft pushing for an alternative way to keep minors from viewing porn, as US and UK laws have caused its traffic to plummet.
Starting today, UK adults will have to prove their age to access porn online. Experts warn that a global wave of age-check laws threatens to chill speech and ultimately harm children and adults alike.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, a case over whether age verification for online porn sites is constitutional.