EU regulators have formally accused Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos of breaching the Digital Services Act (DSA) by failing to prevent minors from accessing their adult content. The European Commission's preliminary findings from a 10-month investigation concluded the platforms' age verification methods are ineffective. Users are only required to click a single box to confirm they are over 18, while measures like content warnings and page blurring are deemed insufficient. The EC demanded the platforms implement robust, privacy-preserving age verification systems to protect minors' rights and wellbeing. The investigation also found the platforms' risk assessments disproportionately prioritized business concerns like reputational damage over societal risks to children. If the Commission confirms the breaches, the platforms could face fines of up to six percent of their global annual turnover.

This action underscores the EU's growing enforcement of the DSA, which mandates platforms to proactively mitigate systemic risks to minors. The EC specifically criticized the platforms for misrepresenting or ignoring consultations with children's rights experts in their risk assessments. The executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, Henna Virkkunen, stated online platforms have a responsibility to protect children, emphasizing that minors accessing adult content at younger ages necessitates stronger safeguards. The platforms now have the opportunity to review the findings and propose remedies before potential enforcement actions.

The case highlights the challenges platforms face in balancing accessibility with child protection. While the EC's preliminary findings focus on the platforms' current measures, the demand for effective age verification systems points towards a potential shift in regulatory expectations for adult content platforms operating within the EU. The outcome could set a precedent for how similar platforms globally approach compliance with child safety regulations under the DSA.