Ohioans will be hacked, doxxed, if porn ID bill passes, adult industry veteran says

Alexandra Snow is the founder of the nonprofit Autonomy Project, award-winning adult media producer, educator, mentor, sex worker rights activist, and owner of the community space Wicked Eden in Columbus.

Senate Bill 212, the so-called “porn ID bill,” is actually an anti-privacy bill that puts you at risk of having your identity stolen, being wrongly arrested, hacked, stalked, doxxed, or swatted in your home.

Just a few months after Louisiana passed a similar law, the office of motor vehicles suffered a cyberattack and data breach.

I am a 20-year adult industry veteran, and in that time, I’ve seen policies introduced and implemented at increasingly alarming rates.

As someone who champions ethical sexual education and exploration, I am dismayed at the attempt to use preventing minor access to adult material as a bait-and-switch tactic for a loss of privacy.

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Senate Bill 212 will not protect children for access porn

As an adult industry professional, I’m also concerned about minors accessing adult material.

I want children to be safe and protected, and for every parent to feel confident that their children are not exposed to adult material. But SB 212 will not accomplish that; it will only create more dangers for Ohioans and remove our right to privacy.

Instead, we should improve internet filter systems for parents, and create better privacy protections for consumers.

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We need better protection from being exploited and having our identities stolen — not more vulnerability to hackers. This is exactly the future Senate Bill 212 will create.

I’m no stranger to age verification.

In fact, adult industry platforms feature some of the most strict and comprehensive verification systems for creators to use their sites.

This process is lengthy and intense, with long waits before accounts are approved and on-going monitoring of proper documentation to ensure performers are consenting and are of legal age.

Unfortunately, this is not the kind of age verification this bill will implement.

SB 212 claims to be an age verification bill to protect kids, but that simply isn’t true.

Most kids already use VPNs to bypass the proposed features, and they understand them better than most adults! Creating fake IDs that can even deceive the security of crypto exchanges is far easier and cheaper than ever before.

A more effective approach would be to offer age-appropriate education on healthy relationships and provide parents with better monitoring tools.

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SB 212 also doesn’t offer Ohioans any protection

If passed, the state could require you to upload your biometric data and sensitive information to third-party companies’ databases for verification, similar to how China enforces late-night internet curfews.

SB 212 also doesn’t offer Ohioans any protection from these third-party companies selling and profiting from your data.

As an adult creator, I’ve personally been stalked, harassed, threatened, and impersonated numerous times over the years, despite taking extra steps to safeguard my privacy.

Many people think that only “bad people” are on the receiving end of profiling, and this simply isn’t true.

Simply existing on the internet can put you in the cross-hairs of anyone who wishes to steal your personal information for their personal gain.

If you’ve ever been hacked, stalked, doxxed, swatted, or had your identity stolen, you know how important data privacy is. It can cost thousands of dollars to fight, not to mention the emotional pain and suffering that comes with it.

This could easy go beyond just porn sites

Let’s also be clear, the vague language in this bill isn’t just for accessing “adult videos” either.

You may not be able to look up a recipe for a cocktail, visit your favorite brewery’s website, or even watch a John Wick movie preview without needing to upload your driver’s license to a public database.

A database, I might add, that you have zero control over how your personal information (such as your home address) might be shared. If that makes you as uncomfortable as me, you too should oppose Ohio Senate Bill 212.

The language of this bill is “what is potentially harmful to juveniles” and that definition is entirely subjective. Broad language like this leaves the door open for much wider censorship, depending on the current year’s political agenda. It could be used to censor information about faith or identities, for example. If passed, SB 212 will remain a law regardless of whether Republicans or Democrats are the majority in power.

The bill says it will protect kids on the internet, but in the near future, it could be used to profile citizens based on their religion, education, income, where they live, and more.

There can be economic consequences

The bill also threatens Ohio’s economy and businesses, as seen in places with similar censorship age verification laws.

National conferences may choose to go to other states, and Cleveland’s medical community may be impeded by unforeseen restrictions.

Inviting poorly-conceived government surveillance into your home to track what you’re viewing is a slippery slope for our Constitutional rights and freedom.

The government can monitor which websites you’ve visited, discussion forums you’re active on, your ideologies, and what YouTube videos you watch. SB 212 makes your identity more vulnerable to hackers as we saw in Louisiana, and it revokes your right as a parent to make decisions in your own home.

SB 212 won’t make kids safer, but it will endanger all Ohioans.

Alexandra Snow is the founder of the nonprofit Autonomy Project, award-winning adult media producer, educator, mentor, sex worker rights activist, and owner of the community space Wicked Eden in Columbus.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Porn age verification bill would steal Ohioans privacy not protect kids