In January 2023, Louisiana became the first state to pass porn age verification laws in an effort to prevent children from being exposed to harmful content online. The new legislation requires any website containing 33.3% or more pornographic material to verify the users’ age using a government ID it also makes porn sites liable for content deemed “harmful to minors”.
Given the warning from lawmakers and legislators across many states in the U.S. who express concern with pornography being shown to children, it’s no surprise that several copycat bills have started moving through state legislatures with varying success—including Arkansas, which recently passed its own version into law.
Utah SB: 287
In 2016, Utah declared porn a “public health crisis”, and approve a resolution that says pornography is “an epidemic that is harming the citizens of Utah and the nation.” In March of 2023, Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed SB 287: Online Pornography Viewing Age Requirements into law.
The law states:
“A commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material harmful to minors on the Internet from a website that contains a substantial portion of such material shall be held liable if the entity fails to perform reasonable age verification methods to verify the age of an individual attempting to access the material.”
It defines harmful material as “material that exploits, is devoted to, or principally consists of descriptions of actual, simulated, or animated display or depiction of any of the following, in a manner patently offensive with respect to minors: (i) pubic hair, anus, vulva, genitals, or nipple of the female breast; (ii) touching, caressing, or fondling of nipples, breasts, buttocks, anuses, or genitals; or (iii) sexual intercourse, masturbation, sodomy, bestiality, oral copulation, flagellation, excretory functions, exhibitions, or any other sexual act.”
Lawmakers likened the age verification requirement to those in place when it comes to alcohol or online gambling and argued that stronger protections are needed to shield kids from pornography, which is rampant online.
Pornhub’s response
In response to the legislation, Pornhub, the largest porn site in the U.S., completely blocked all of Utah from accessing its site. Anyone accessing Pornhub from a Utah-based IP address gets redirected from the homepage to a video of porn performer Cherie Deville, explaining why they won’t be able to visit the site and urging them to tell their representatives to change their age verification law (current status as of May 1, 2023).
After Pornhub blocked access to its users in Utah, VPN Mentor conducted, analyzed, and published research showing a surge of 967% in VPN demand in Utah.
Porn industry groups sue Utah
Since the legislation was passed, porn industry groups are suing Utah over the age verification law. The Free Speech Coalition—along with erotica author D.S. Swanson, an unnamed attorney who represents adult-oriented businesses and companies that manage adult websites—argue that Utah’s new law infringes on constitutional privacy and free speech rights. The lawsuit also contends that the state doesn’t have the capability to verify digital IDs online.
Under federal law, it is currently illegal to show children pornography. However, that law is rarely enforced.
Is I.D verification the solution for protecting kids?
Pornhub contends that the most effective solution would be to identify users by their devices. Some experts also argue that age verification only drives material that is harmful to minors to less safe spaces on the internet and exposes adults to more risk of identity theft, private data hacks, and extortion.
While we don’t suggest that these porn verification laws are the best or only solution to ensuring minors aren’t exposed to explicit material, it is a possible solution.
What research shows is that pornography can harm both the individuals who consume it and society as a whole—particularly underage youth and their developing brains and relationships.
What porn sites teach kids about sex
The porn industry knows that children and youth who have questions about sex often feel uncomfortable going to their parents for answers.
While porn is often called “adult material,” many of its consumers are well under the legal age.Peter, J., & Valkenburg, P. M. (2016). Adolescents and pornography: A review of 20 years of research.53(4-5), 509-531. doi:10.1080/00224499.2016.1143441Copy Studies show that most young people are exposed to porn by age 13,British Board of Film Classification. (2020). Young people, pornography & age-verification. BBFC. Retrieved from https://www.bbfc.co.uk/about-classification/researchCopy and according to a nationally representative survey of U.S. teens, 84.4% of 14 to 18-year-old males and 57% of 14 to 18-year-old females have viewed pornography.Wright, P. J., Paul, B., & Herbenick, D. (2021). Preliminary insights from a U.S. probability sample on adolescents’ pornography exposure, media psychology, and sexual aggression. J.Health Commun., 1-8. doi:10.1080/10810730.2021.1887980Copy
That means that most young people are getting at least some of their education about sex from porn, whether they mean to or not. In fact, one study shows that approximately 45% of teens who consumed porn did so in part to learn about sex.British Board of Film Classification. (2020). Young people, pornography & age-verification. BBFC. Retrieved from https://www.bbfc.co.uk/about-classification/researchCopy
Similarly, survey results also show one in four 18 to 24-year-olds (24.5%) listed pornography as the most helpful source to learn how to have sex.Rothman, E. F., Beckmeyer, J. J., Herbenick, D., Fu, T. C., Dodge, B., & Fortenberry, J. D. (2021). The Prevalence of Using Pornography for Information About How to Have Sex: Findings from a Nationally Representative Survey of U.S. Adolescents and Young Adults. Archives of sexual behavior, 50(2), 629–646. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01877-7Copy
Pornography is actively spreading harmful misinformation about sex. In fact, one study suggests that the more someone consumes porn, the more sexually illiterate they tend to become.Wright, P. J., Tokunaga, R. S., Herbenick, D., & Paul, B. (2021). Pornography vs. sexual science: The role of pornography use and dependency in U.S. teenagers’ sexual illiteracy., 1-22. doi:10.1080/03637751.2021.1987486Copy
Children deserve to be protected from the harms of easy access to hardcore porn, and consenting adults deserve to know the facts so they can consider before consuming.
What YOU can do as a parent
Survey results also showed that over half of 11 to 16-year-old boys (53%) and over a third of 11 to 16-year-old girls (39%) reported believing that pornography was a realistic depiction of sex, and 44% of boys who watched porn reported that online pornography gave them ideas about the type of sex they wanted to try.Martellozzo, E., Monaghan, A., Adler, J. R., Davidson, J., Leyva, R., & Horvath, M. A. H. (2016). 'I wasn’t sure it was normal to watch it'. London: NSPCC. Retrieved from https://learning.nspcc.org.uk/research-resources/2016/i-wasn-t-sure-it-was-normal-to-watch-itCopy
Clearly, it’s more important than ever for parents to talk to their kids about what sex and porn are, and keep the conversations ongoing, open, honest, and loving.
Instilling a total fear of porn in a young child may work for a short while, but it’s not a long-term help to keeping the lines of communication open and loving.
Let’s face it—if kids feel their parents are open to listening to their struggles or questions, they’ll be more likely to approach the subject whenever it comes up instead of hiding their curiosity and searching for answers on their own in the wrong places.
Keep your kids safer online
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