Utah AG questions Pornhub over alleged ‘loophole’ in moderating child sexual abuse material

By Bridger Beal-Cvetko

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    SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (KSL) — Sean Reyes is one of several state attorneys general questioning Pornhub over reports that a “loophole” in the site’s moderation practices may allow content creators to upload child sexual abuse material to the platform.

The Utah attorney general, a Republican, signed on to a letter along with colleagues from 25 other states that alleges Pornhub doesn’t adequately verify the ages of performers in videos uploaded to the site. The letter follows reporting from the National Desk claiming that the company “knows of and ignores a ‘loophole’ that may allow users to publish and earn money from content containing minors.”

“We are deeply concerned by recent reports of this possible workaround that could permit countless children to be victimized,” the letter states.

According to the National Desk, Pornhub requires content creators and performers to produce a photo ID in order to upload videos to the site, but it doesn’t require that performers show their faces in videos. Because of this, “there is no way to confirm that the content actually features the performer/content creator that uploads the content,” the letter states, opening the door for child sexual abuse material.

In a statement to KSL.com, Pornhub’s parent company, Aylo, disputed the “loophole” described, and promised a formal response to the letter.

“We are aware that an employee erroneously points to the existence of a supposed ‘loophole’ in the company’s moderation practices. What is being referenced is that Aylo platforms let their content creators and performers choose whether to show or to hide their face in their content,” the statement said. “There are a number of reasons why a verified model may choose to upload content that does not include their face, including their right to privacy. For this reason, we take extra precautions to ensure this content can be uploaded safely.”

The statement said the company uses a process to determine if each of the performers in a “piece of privacy-preserving content” uploaded to the site can be identified.

“If the performers can be identified, the content may be approved, and if not, the content is escalated to a senior member of the moderation team for a secondary review and to determine whether the content can be approved, rejected, or whether additional documentation is required,” the company said.

It said it’s aware of the “evolving challenges posed by user-generated content online,” and said it employs an evolving stable of safety measures by banning downloads, requiring human moderation of all uploaded content, automated moderation tools, and allowing only “verified models” and “content partners” to upload content to the site.

The attorneys general point out that the National Center on Sexual Exploitation has filed several lawsuits against the site on behalf of children who say they were sexually abused by the site, and nine women who claim they were secretly filmed while changing, the footage of which was later uploaded to Pornhub.

“As you are aware, various federal and state laws forbid the creation and distribution of child sexual abuse material,” the letter says. “We are concerned that Aylo and its subsidiary Pornhub, and possibly other subsidiaries, may be proliferating the production and dissemination of CSAM through the ‘loophole’ identified by your employee.”

The attorneys general asked Pornhub to respond within 30 days to provide an explanation of the loophole, explain whether performers are allowed to obscure their faces, and if so, whether the company plans to change the policy to “ensure that no children or other victims are being abused for profit on any of its platforms.”

They also asked the company to detail any steps it is taking to prevent child sexual abuse material created by artificial intelligence from being shared on the platform.

Pornhub blocked access to its site in Utah earlier this year, after the state enacted a law requiring pornography websites to verify that users are at least 18 years old. Adult entertainment companies challenged the constitutionality of the law, but their lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge in August.

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