The European Commission has launched an investigation into Pornhub and three other porn sites and platforms, with the organization suspecting that they are not complying with age verification rules.
As well as Pornhub, the European Commission, which is the executive arm of the EU, announced on Tuesday (May 27, 2025) that it is investigating Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos.
The Commission said that these sites and platforms had not implemented “appropriate and proportionate measures” to ensure safety for minors, “in particular with age verification tools to safeguard minors from adult content”.
The investigation follows the introduction of the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), which came into full effect in 2024. The DSA law has tough rules about porn sites and platforms preventing minors from accessing explicit content in the EU, and is part of a wider global crackdown on porn sites’ age verification, or lack thereof.
The Commission said that now a formal investigation had been launched, it had the right to adopt interim measures and “non-compliance decisions” regarding the sites and platforms. This could potentially lead to restriction measures being placed on them.
It added that the four sites and platforms thunder investigation could be accessed with one simple click, with users not made to undertake rigid age verification measures. If the sites and platforms don’t comply with age verification rules outlined in the DSA law, they face being fined up to six percent of their annual turnover.
Henna Virkkunen, an executive vice-president for tech issues at the Commission, said: “Our priority is to protect minors and allow them to navigate safely online… we are determined to tackle any potential harm to young online users.”
Aylo, the company that owns Pornhub, told BBC News that it knew about the investigation and was “fully committed to ensuring the safety of minors online”. The company added: “We will always comply with the law, but we hope that governments around the world will implement laws that protect the safety and security of users.”
Over the past few years Aylo has blocked access to its porn sites, including Pornhub, in various US states following new age verification rules being introduced in the states. The company claimed that the new rules were not workable, and has pushed for the law to require age verification for access to porn to be made via devices, rather than directly on sites.
The European Commission is set to launch an age verification app in summer 2025, that can be adopted by EU Member States then used by porn sites and platforms to verify users’ ages. The app will be an interim solution until the introduction of the EU Digital Wallet in late 2026.
Authorities in the UK are also cracking down hard on age verification for porn. Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulation authority, recently launched an investigation into a porn site company and a company behind AI ‘nudify’ web apps. They are suspected of not implementing proper age verification processes.
Following the introduction of the Online Safety Act, in the UK porn sites and platforms have until July 25, 2025 to start enforcing rigid age verification logistics. Some types of porn sites have been obliged to introduce better age verification methods ahead of this deadline.
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