“We are talking about the obligation to verify the age of users” – Kommersant FM

Kommersant FM columnist Alexander Levi talks about how the most popular sites will verify their visitors in the European Union.

Three of the world’s largest porn sites are facing new requirements under the Digital Services Act in the European Union. The local regulator has expanded the scope of the document, which is designed to ensure the safety of people on the Internet. Pornhub, XVideos and Stripchat are now classified as VLOPs, or “Very Large Online Platforms.” These are the first sites with adult content to fall under the new legislation. According to it, the very large category includes platforms with a monthly audience of 45 million people or more; such resources are subject to stricter control.

In particular, we are talking about the obligation to verify the age of users. Suggested methods may include verification through credit cards, ID cards and facial scanning. According to representatives of the European Commission, in the future the issue can be resolved, including with the help of a European identification wallet, which is being prepared for launch. This is a digital identity card that will allow you not only to confirm it, but also to exchange electronic documents.

Failure to comply with the Digital Services Act risks any very large platform with a fine of up to 6% of global turnover. The European Commission gave companies four months to bring their cases into compliance with the requirements. In particular, companies are required to create a contact center for communication with authorities and users, report criminal attacks, ensure transparency in advertising, as well as recommendation systems or content moderation decisions. In addition, resources included in the new category must themselves identify, analyze and evaluate the systemic risks associated with their services.

The new law came into effect in August. The current list of 20 platforms includes almost all popular social networks, several trading platforms, three Google products, a housing booking service, four video platforms, one of which is YouTube, and all the rest are porn sites.

The Xvideos audience reaches 160 million monthly users, which is comparable to a third of the entire population of the European Union. Meanwhile, Pornhub representatives insist that the number of their visitors in the EU is below the threshold specified in the law, amounting to 33 million people.