Lawmakers open to revisiting bill that led to NC users losing access to porn sites
State lawmakers involved with a bill that took effect Jan. 1 requiring pornographic websites to verify users’ age say they are open to conversations about concerns over the law after many of the sites cut access across North Carolina.
And as lawmakers consider whether anything should change, litigation could also be on the horizon, hinted a pornography industry trade group involved in federal lawsuits across the country against age-verification laws.
The new law requiring age verification was included in a larger bill, House Bill 8, which passed overwhelmingly in the Republican-controlled General Assembly with votes of 47-0 and 102-8, and was signed by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper.
In late December, before the law took effect, several major porn sites cut access to North Carolina users. Many of the sites that cut access were those affiliated with Aylo, a Canadian adult-entertainment conglomerate that owns several brands, including Pornhub.
Many of Aylo’s sites now feature a video message explaining that it opted to cut access in North Carolina due to HB 8 and safety concerns with having users provide their ID every time they visit the sites. It says that the law does not have any “proper enforcement” mechanism, giving platforms the choice of whether to comply and opening the door for people to access unsafe sites.
It also says that few sites can compare to its “robust” trust and safety measures, which, according to Aylo’s website, include banning downloads and allowing only verified users to upload content. This verification of users is done through a third-party system which requires uploaders to provide their ID, the site says.
The new law states that porn sites in North Carolina will need to verify ages through a commercially available database or “another commercially reasonable method for age and identity verification.” It says that users will be allowed to sue sites if their information is retained, which would violate the law. Parents or guardians whose minor child is allowed to access porn will also be able to sue.
Concerns and alternatives for adult website legislation
Rep. Jon Hardister, a Guilford County Republican and one of the bill’s main sponsors, told The News & Observer in an interview that the premise of the age verification is “simple.”
“We want to keep minors off of X-rated websites,” Hardister said. “And the way it’s written now is that the web provider is expected to create an age verification process, which would presumably be done with an ID.”
He said it seems sites are claiming that the law requires them to make users “submit an ID like each time they visit the site.” But in fact, he said, “I’m thinking there could be another way to do it; they could create a quasi membership where you would upload an ID and maybe be provided login credentials.”
Another option, if there were confidentiality liability concerns from these sites, said Hardister, is for users to have to register a device. He said he would have to speak with Information technology experts to make sure it’s doable and that he would also want to discuss how minors can be prevented from accessing these devices.
But, “it’s a conversation we can have if it effectuates the intended outcome,” he said.
Hardister said he had not heard from any of these sites but that he would not be surprised if they had lobbyists or representatives contact lawmakers in the future.
And while Hardister was one of the main sponsors of the overall bill, Sen. Amy Galey, an Alamance County Republican, was a primary architect of the age-verification language.
She told The N&O that “if anyone has any ideas about how to improve legislation,” she was “always interested to hear from those people.”
She added that she did not think it was “credible to think that the parent company for Pornhub is extremely interested in protecting children or user privacy.” Galey referenced recent lawsuits against Aylo, including a lawsuit by a women alleging the site posted explicit videos of her from when she was 13 years old and which were shared by a former boyfriend without her consent.
For Galey, the sites shutting down access in the state “is not genuine,” as it signifies a loss of business for them but may be a preface to legal action. Galey said none of the porn sites had reached out to her regarding working on changes to the new age-verification legislation.
Asked if Aylo had been working with lawmakers to find a solution, the company said via email that “it would love to work with lawmakers to find a solution that preserves user privacy and safety. “
Aylo said that while it had publicly supported age verification of users for years, “we believe that any law to this effect must preserve user safety and privacy, and must effectively protect children from accessing content intended for adults.” It said the way many jurisdictions worldwide have chosen to implement age verification “is ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous,” citing enforcement concerns and concerns with people having to provide personal information.
“The only solution that makes the internet safer, preserves user privacy and stands to prevent children from accessing adult content is performing age verification at the source: on the device,” it said. “The technology to accomplish this exists today. What is required is the political and social will to make it happen. We are eager to be part of this solution and are happy to collaborate with government, civil society and tech partners to arrive at an effective device-based age verification solution.”
Hardister said enforcement is “definitely something we have to think about. Enforcement is not always easy, no matter what the subject is.”
“In this case, you’re dealing with the internet, so it’s something we’re gonna have to work on and I suspect that we’ll be having conversations relatively soon on additional measures,” he said, referring to the legislative session that starts in April.
Also difficult to control on the internet is the use of Virtual Private Networks, which help mask a person’s location on the internet. A Charlotte Observer analysis of Google search trends showed North Carolinians are searching for information on VPNs. Research by Privacy Co. on VPNs shows that interest in these shot up by 266% in North Carolina in late December.
Letter sent to Cooper and lawmakers, federal litigation
Groups representing the adult-entertainment industry and social conservatives who want to limit the industry’s reach questioned each other’s agendas in response to questions from The N&O about the new law.
Mike Stabile, spokesman for the Free Speech Coalition, a pornography industry trade group that has filed federal lawsuits against age verification requirements, said via email that “the adult industry supports efforts to keep minors off adult sites,” adding that it had pioneered protections to make it easier for parents to block adult sites on minors’ devices.
He referenced the “Restricted To Adults” website label, which allows parents to filter out sites using this label. But, he said the coalition is opposed to HB 8 because it “creates significant burdens for both consumers and platforms.”
“HB 8 is a technologically flawed bill that does little to keep minors from accessing adult content,” he said. “Since HB 8 targets adult sites specifically, it paradoxically encourages the growth of adult content on social media, making it more likely that kids are going to stumble upon it unintentionally. It also encourages the growth of illegal and pirate sites overseas as they’re unlikely to respond to a complaint in North Carolina.”
He also pointed to increased VPN use and identity theft, and shared a letter sent by the coalition to Cooper and lawmakers in late September where concerns were flagged. In this letter, the association says that groups behind the bill, “such as the American Principles Project, call for a total ban on ‘pornography,’ a term they use broadly to encompass all discussion of LGBTQ+ issues.”
“For them, bills like House Bill 8 are the gateway to a much larger censorship project, and should be regarded as such,” it says.
“While we’re currently involved in federal court challenges in Utah, Louisiana and Texas, we’re looking at absolutely every state that enacts a law, including North Carolina,” said Stabile.
Spokesperson Paul Dupont said in an email the group supports laws like HB 8, “because we believe, like the vast majority of Americans, that children should be protected from pornographic content online.”
Dupont said technology exists to block access and there is “widespread agreement that pornography use has become an epidemic and is especially destructive when it comes to children.”
“Perhaps (the Free Speech Coalition) can explain why exploitative sites like Pornhub should be allowed to target minors with their violent and misogynistic content,” he said.
A Texas age-verification law has been struck down by a judge who said the law violated free speech rights and was overly broad and vague, the San Antonio Current reported. But this was appealed, and the law is in effect until the court battle plays out. Utah and Lousiana’s lawsuits were largely dismissed, but the Free Speech Coalition has filed an appeal in Utah.
