France blocks porn platforms: Law forces providers for protest!

France blocks porn platforms: Law forces providers for protest!

Frankreich - In France, the erotic platforms Pornhub, YouPorn and Redtube were blocked for internet users on June 4, 2025. This drastic measure is the result of a new law on age verification that the operator Aylo does not want to implement. According to Exxpress.at , Aylo considers the strict specifications as "dangerous precedence case". When trying to inform the French public about the possible consequences of the law, the blocked platform shows a protest message with the image "The freedom leads the people".

In particular, the required age verification by ID or credit card ensures controversy. Aylo describes these measures as potentially "data protection injuries", "ineffective" and "dangerous". Nevertheless, the French law provides for a "double blind" process in which personal data is not transmitted to the platforms. France's Minister of Artificial Intelligence, Clara Chappaz, emphasizes that Aylo can leave France if the company does not adhere to the law.

EU Commission initiates investigations The EU Commission has initiated investigations against several large porn platforms, including Pornhub, Xnxx, Xvideos and Stripchat, in parallel to the processes in France. The accusation is for a lack of youth protection and inadequate age controls. According to the Tagesschau , the current age verification on these pages is not strictly enough to prevent minors from use.

If the allegations are confirmed, the affected companies face high fines. The Commission is planning a coordinated procedure of the national authorities in the 27 EU countries in order to monitor even smaller platforms. This will be done as part of the Digital Services Act (DSA), which defines stricter control over platforms with more than 45 million users per month.

new age verification solutions in the EU

In order to ensure the security of children and adolescents, the EU plans its own age verification app, which should give users access to age-limited content without passing on personal data to the platforms. This app is expected to be provided in the summer of 2025 and is part of a long-term strategy for the development of a uniform system for age verification, such as digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu reported.

The project stipulates that users can prove that they are over 18 years old to access content such as pornography, gambling or alcohol. A short-term solution will be provided until the EuID pocket of the EuID pocket at the end of 2026. T-Scy was commissioned to develop this temporary solution, which should be user-friendly and customizable.

The current situation in France and the efforts of the EU clearly show how serious politics takes the topic of youth protection and age verification. It remains to be seen how the legal framework will develop and which measures the platforms will ultimately take to meet the new requirements of the authorities.