Why Age Verification Laws Aren’t About Child Protection

Written By Leanne Yau

Did you ever tap a “yes, I’m over 18” button on sites as a child despite being under 18? Most of you will probably say yes. I’m not here to say that was right or wrong, but to acknowledge the fact that if someone, regardless of age, wants to find sexual content, they will find it - so we may as well deal with that reality instead of trying to deny or control it through poorly implemented laws. I say this as a certified sex educator with a Law degree from Oxford, as a champion for sex worker’s rights, and frankly, as a horny adult who just wants to see horny content without the government or data companies getting in my way.

Mandatory age verification on porn sites does NOT actually protect children. In reality, it creates more problems than it solves, namely around data privacy, sex worker rights, and educational content on sex and relationships. Here's why.

Let me state for the record: I do not believe minors should have access to 18+ content. Obviously. But the problem here is that there is a difference between how you feel things SHOULD be, and how REALISTIC and PRACTICAL it actually is to make those things happen.

Statistically, the average age a child is first exposed to porn is 13 - meaning there are many who see it much younger. This is bad - but it is also a reality of being on the internet. Adult filters are unreliable, and curious, tech-savvy kids always find ways to get around them.

I say this as someone with an Oxford law degree: the efficacy of a law is tempered by the logistics of implementing it. It's one of the first things you learn. To that end, the UK's Online Safety Act (OSA) fails to achieve its stated objective while creating a host of new issues. In countries that have rolled out age verification checks for porn, they have encountered all kinds of technical issues. Facial scans can be faked, kids can steal a parent's phone/credit card, and of course, VPNs exist. These barriers don't actually do anything to protect kids.

Age verification checks on porn are also, frankly, a data privacy nightmare. Adults have a right to a private life - do you really want a private company having sensitive data on what you search? What if that data is sold and used irresponsibly (e.g. employment checks), or leaked?

And you know who else is getting fucked over? Sex workers. This vulnerable group is now being further jeopardised and targeted - incomes disappearing overnight, increased censorship making it hard to advertise safely, and faceless workers being forced to show their faces online. The MPs supporting the OSA are also, conveniently, anti sex work. These people are claiming to "save" sex workers from "exploitation" while actively driving them into more dangerous/abusive/exploitative situations by making decisions about them, without them, and calling it "feminist". Sex workers are some of the most financially and socially vulnerable members of society, and their rights are being erased while basic rights to privacy and adult freedoms of bodily autonomy and sexual expression online are threatened...all in the name of "protecting children".

Another concerning thing is the OSA banning "content with intent to seduce" - a concerningly vague phrase. So people aren't allowed allowed to be hot on the internet anymore? Where is the line for this? Who gets to decide how it is policed? And how effective will this really be? We're already dealing with internet censorship issues on Meta affecting users who aren't even making porn. Sex educators like me, pole dancers, artists - hell, even creators wearing low-cut summer tops! - are dealing with wrongful content takedowns and threats to our jobs.

The fact is: there is no foolproof way to prevent children from seeing 18+ content online. So if we really want to keep them safe, take a harm reduction approach instead. Give kids comprehensive sex education around porn literacy, consent, identifying misogyny, and mutual respect.

Regardless of your feelings on sex work, it isn't going anywhere - and curious kids finding ways to get around adult censors aren't either. Sex worker rights and child protection are not mutually exclusive, and pitting them against each other is deeply dishonest behaviour.

Make no mistake: the Online Safety Act has well-meaning aims, and combating child exploitation and abuse is necessary and important. However, its wording and resulting impact makes it clear that this law was never really about online safety, but about censorship and control.

Instead of banning porn or trying to police how legal adults express themselves online, we should be focusing on harm reduction and equipping children with age-appropriate tools to engage with the internet safely and responsibly. The Online Safety Act in the UK is deeply concerning, and unfortunately it is not the only law of its kind.

For more information on this I recommend checking out the intsa posts by @maedbjoy (particularly her article in Polyester Zine), @reedamberx and @sexquisite.events on the real impacts of this law on their work. Listen to SWers, who are fighting for your rights more than you know and likely will ever appreciate!

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Leanne Yau
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