All porn sites must 'robustly' verify UK user ages by July

[puntingking]

An interesting article on CNN: External Link/Members Only

"The owner of Pornhub has blocked access to its website in France because of its objections to a new French law requiring pornographic sites to verify the age of their users.
Adult entertainment company Aylo has 'made the difficult decision to suspend access' in France to its 'user-uploaded' platforms – which also include sites YouPorn and Redtube – from Wednesday, Alex Kekesi, Aylo’s vice president of brand and community, said in a statement."

I wonder if they will do this in the UK soon?

I can't see any reason why they will not do this to the UK, they have also done it to 19 states in the USA (their own country)

They seem to be against the whole age verify thing 

[juzz]

...
They seem to be against the whole age verify thing 

You're absolutely right.  There are definitely pros and cons to age verification. I think Pornhub are just thinking that people will find a way round the blocks using VPNs, proxies etc., and they don't need to put time, effort and money into managing verification.

[thimble29]

The irony of this is it'll be quicker to setup a VPN than it'll be to verify your ID, not to mention you can get a VPN with a debit card or PayPal I expect

[Steve2]

The irony of this is it'll be quicker to setup a VPN than it'll be to verify your ID, not to mention you can get a VPN with a debit card or PayPal I expect

There are plenty of free vpn's.

External Link/Members Only  is apparently very good according to Reddit

[mr712]

FastestVPN has a very reasonable lifetime deal as well, been using that for a few years now.

[myothernameis]

I see now, on Ukpunting, were aged checked 18+

[RogerBoner]

We haven't verified our ages. 

[scutty brown]

We haven't verified our ages. 

how many years have you had the e-mail address you signed up with?

[RogerBoner]

how many years have you had the e-mail address you signed up with?

scutty, does said email address have a timestamp? 

[daviemac]

We haven't verified our ages. 

That can easily be solved, if you say you haven't been age verified then you have no place on here. Though I would suggest you read the several threads posted by Head1 on the subject to see if you want to change your mind.

[scutty brown]

scutty, does said email address have a timestamp? 

not directly, but it is possible to check when it came live

[Head1]

As part of new UK laws coming into effect 25 July 2025, all adult websites must verify that their users are 18 or over. This is being enforced by Ofcom under the Online Safety Act.

✅ UKPunting is fully compliant – and your privacy remains protected.
Here’s a quick summary of what’s happening:

🔐 What’s Changing?
Age verification is now legally required for all UK adult sites by 25 July 2025.
UKPunting uses a trusted third-party verification provider to confirm age — we never see your ID or personal info.
You’ll simply be marked as "verified" or "not verified". That’s it.
🧾 Will I need to upload ID or personal details?
No. Verification is handled entirely by our secure third-party partner.
UKPunting does not collect, view, or store any of your documents, identity, or real-world data.
We receive only a simple signal: “verified” or “not verified.”

👥 What About Existing Members?
Most long-standing members are already verified, based on email history, post activity, and internal checks.
If your account raised concerns, we’ve contacted you privately.
In these cases, posts have been temporarily hidden — but will be restored as soon as verification is complete.
🧠 What Will Guests & Non-Members See?
From 25 July 2025, any content shown to guests or unverified users will be AI-filtered and summarised, in line with the law.
✅ Full content remains fully accessible to verified members.

🙈 Is My Anonymity Still Safe?
Absolutely. UKPunting has always prioritised privacy and will never compromise your anonymity.

❓ Need Help?
If you have questions or need assistance with verification:


Contact us via Head1


We appreciate your cooperation and continued support as we meet these new legal requirements while keeping UKPunting safe, private, and community-driven.

— The UKPunting Team

[whaleears]

External Link/Members Only
Pornhub and a number of other major adult websites have confirmed they will introduce enhanced age checks for users from next month.

[Strawberry]

External Link/Members Only
Pornhub and a number of other major adult websites have confirmed they will introduce enhanced age checks for users from next month.

I have just read this I really do not think many porn and sex industry consumers, realise the extent of the changes that are about to be initiated.

[whaleears]

I agree, it's been spoken about here obviously, but I guess we would wouldn't we? But the average joe who likes a cheeky late night tug is in for a shock.

[mr712]

I’ve just gone through the verification for a porn site with an app called Yoti.

Essentially you register with a mobile number and email address, then it takes a couple of quick videos of your face. I didn’t give my name or anything else.

The way they say it works is that they don’t use facial recognition per se, but look at features like grey hair and weathered skin to estimate whether you’re over 18 or not. Yoti includes the option to scan your ID, for other kinds of check (I think the app is used in recruitment and housing too for example) or presumably if you’re incorrectly estimated to be under 18, but that wasn’t essential so obviously I didn’t do it

Once that’s confirmed, you link your Yoti account to your account on the site, and they receive the yes or no - no personal details are shared with the site.

So it’s fairly quick and painless. However I wouldn’t rule out that the sites are getting more information than they say, or that there will be a data leak exposing sites alongside email addresses and phone numbers. Obviously use disposable details for both of these.

[myothernameis]

I have just read this I really do not think many porn and sex industry consumers, realise the extent of the changes that are about to be initiated.

Guessing the search engines for searching for porn, will also have to comply

[scutty brown]

Guessing the search engines for searching for porn, will also have to comply

And presumably reverse image search is going to be badly hit......time to use TOR for that maybe

[advent2016]

And presumably reverse image search is going to be badly hit......time to use TOR for that maybe

Can't imagine Yandex bothering

[scutty brown]

Can't imagine Yandex bothering

Still a big question as to who really controls Yandex. There are both "free world" and "Russian" versions, funny how they seem to both have the same results. A lot of obfuscation going on regarding who really runs them, don't believe all you read

[whaleears]

Further reading- Meet Baroness Gabby Bertin, A former bag carrier for Dave 'Pig Fucker' Cameron & Liam Fox, who somehow talked his way into fucking Natalie Imbruglia. Anyway, Gabby is leading the way on Porn restriction.

External Link/Members Only

External Link/Members Only

[puntingking]

Further reading- Meet Baroness Gabby Bertin, A former bag carrier for Dave 'Pig Fucker' Cameron & Liam Fox, who somehow talked his way into fucking Natalie Imbruglia. Anyway, Gabby is leading the way on Porn restriction.

External Link/Members Only

External Link/Members Only

Talk about taking extreme cases.



Another person who thinks she knows better 

[advent2016]

Still a big question as to who really controls Yandex. There are both "free world" and "Russian" versions, funny how they seem to both have the same results. A lot of obfuscation going on regarding who really runs them, don't believe all you read

They run several other services, a bit like Wechat and Uber. They take payments for several IPTV systems. I use them myself. You can pay annually for all the TV and films you can eat from Sky, Netflix, Hulu, BBC,ITV, Disney, Apple, Amazon, HBO etc without adverts  in NVOD or with ads in VOD for about the same as three months from one provider. You also get about 1000 channels or porn that you can turn off. They do cheap multiroom deals. I watch on a Fire stick or an Enigma STB to record stuff.

[scutty brown]

They run several other services, a bit like Wechat and Uber. They take payments for several IPTV systems. I use them myself. You can pay annually for all the TV and films you can eat from Sky, Netflix, Hulu, BBC,ITV, Disney, Apple, Amazon, HBO etc without adverts  in NVOD or with ads in VOD for about the same as three months from one provider. You also get about 1000 channels or porn that you can turn off. They do cheap multiroom deals. I watch on a Fire stick or an Enigma STB to record stuff.

Interesting
But are you paying the supposed "independent" Yandex who are based in western europe, or the Russian company ? They're supposedly complete separated, but it looks like they may not be. If you're actually paying the Russians, even indirectly, shit could happen

[Head1]

Important Update: New Content Rules and How We're Adapting changing our minds

New plan. AI was extremely expensive unreliable, and would have been impossible to check everything it had changed .......... so

Automated Text Redaction
We've added a new system that automatically checks posts for certain banned words and phrases. If any are found, they will appear as


REDACTED in the text. This will help us comply with UK law while keeping as much of the original discussion as possible.

Massage Review Section Now Visible (Redacted)

Previously, our massage review section was hidden from visitors. From now on, it will be visible to everyone; however, any restricted words will be redacted for UK visitors.
 
Registered members will still have full access to the unedited Version.

Three Versions of the Site
To handle different legal requirements, the forum will now have three tiers:

The Redacted Version will be visible to visitors from the UK. Restricted words will appear as REDACTED.

Unedited Visitors Version will be available to visitors from outside the UK (where allowed).

Full Members Forum: By joining and logging in, you will gain access to everything unabridged, regardless of your location.

We understand that this is a significant change, but it's necessary to maintain the forum's online presence and accessibility to everyone.

It seems that the best result for visitors will be when they are in another country, as the site will then be the same for them.

[Thephoenix]

I know the massage section used to be visible to non members, but I thought it was a good move to make it hidden.

I think it may have an effect on the amount of detail contained in reviews, or possibly even reduce the amount of reviews.

Members may be more reluctant to post the names of masseuses in massage establishments.

Maybe it will prevent some places offering extras.

I guess there must be good reasons to change the rules.

I just thought I'd make some observations

[mr.bluesky]

I know the massage section used to be visible to non members, but I thought it was a good move to make it hidden.

I think it may have an effect on the amount of detail contained in reviews, or possibly even reduce the amount of reviews.

Members may be more reluctant to post the names of masseuses in massage establishments.

Maybe it will prevent some places offering extras.

I guess there must be good reasons to change the rules.

I just thought I'd make some observations

A good point. I thought having the massage review section hidden and only available to members was a good idea as certain establishment owners would not be able to see what extras their staff were offering.  I guess Head 1 knows best for changing this. I don't think it will effect the number of reviews being posted but  leaving out the service providers name would be a bit pointless when posting a review as most massage shops have more than one member of staff so punters want to know who gives the best service 

[Engl1shmuff1ns]

Thanks team for getting to grips with the law and technology. Just a quick thought on the massage page, in particular.

Is there a Bulletin Board code, such as [//r] that could be adapted and allow members to mark text for manual redaction to visitors and only visible to members.
e.g.
Typed text,
I saw [//r]Flossie[//r/] and she blew...

Appearance to visitors,
I saw REDACTED and she blew...

Appearance to members,
I saw Flossie and she blew...

Just a thought. EM

[Colston36]

External Link/Members Only

I hold the strong view that organisations using the word robustly are without exception run or staffed by twats 

[whaleears]

External Link/Members Only
Bluesky is rolling out age verification in the UK

If users don’t want to verify their age, or if they’re under 18, they will still be able to have an account with certain features limited. Bluesky will block “adult-appropriate content” and turn off certain features, such as direct messaging.

Still waiting to see what Reddit & Twitter will do, but the above is an option I didn't realise was a possibility.

it will let users verify their age by scanning their face, uploading an ID, or entering a payment card.

This seems incredibly trivial. What's to stop an under-18 simply using their parents card details?

(Bluesky recently complained about the sheer number of people on their platform trying to cancel each other over political disagreements despite it's user-base being predominantly Left leaning)

[scutty brown]

I hold the strong view that organisations using the word robustly are without exception run or staffed by twats

That's a very robust view!!!   

[mr.bluesky]

External Link/Members Only
Bluesky is rolling out age verification in the UK

Nothing to do with me   

[Mariokoko]

Checked my AW profile, and these are the options for verification, and think I had bought credits, to verify my age



Hidden Image/Members Only

just go get a prepaid credit card load with 10 or 50 quid and you get around having to give your own details
most sim only prepay after a month let you access porn sites so use one of them rather than your daily mobile

[Mariokoko]

External Link/Members Only
Bluesky is rolling out age verification in the UK

Still waiting to see what Reddit & Twitter will do, but the above is an option I didn't realise was a possibility.

This seems incredibly trivial. What's to stop an under-18 simply using their parents card details?

(Bluesky recently complained about the sheer number of people on their platform trying to cancel each other over political disagreements despite it's user-base being predominantly Left leaning)

lmao bluesky, forgot that was a thing  they do that a final nail in that SJW sites coffin

[myothernameis]

just go get a prepaid credit card load

Prepaid credit cards, are unlikely to work, to verify that your over 18, and if you think about it, it makes common sense.  Anyone can go into a shop and by a prepaid credit card, even someone who is only 15 years old

All bank cards have a 12 digit account number, and the first 4 numbers define who issued the card, and this would block use of these cards on adult sites

But it seems to google, you can buy adult prepaid credit cards, and likely from a sex shop

[whaleears]

External Link/Members Only

Reddit don’t see your ID, but Persona do, who are a company based out of San Francisco, who will definitely, absolutely & without a doubt process data inline with GDPR (promise guv)

[Thephoenix]

A good point. I thought having the massage review section hidden and only available to members was a good idea as certain establishment owners would not be able to see what extras their staff were offering.  I guess Head 1 knows best for changing this. I don't think it will effect the number of reviews being posted but  leaving out the service providers name would be a bit pointless when posting a review as most massage shops have more than one member of staff so punters want to know who gives the best service 

to a non member the massage reviews read like a script from an old Carry On film.
I can imagine old Frankie Howard reading out all the innuendos with his "Oohs" & "Aahs"

It's a shame that at least the discussion section at the top of massage page in some regions couldn't have been left just for members.
The whole point of having that heading was to be discreet.

[Gucio]

Prepaid credit cards, are unlikely to work, to verify that your over 18, and if you think about it, it makes common sense.  Anyone can go into a shop and by a prepaid credit card, even someone who is only 15 years old

All bank cards have a 12 digit account number, and the first 4 numbers define who issued the card, and this would block use of these cards on adult sites

But it seems to google, you can buy adult prepaid credit cards, and likely from a sex shop

I just did that on adultwork but 55f credits and they state that my age verification will work immediately after that ,sadly it don't work

[El Jefe]

Looks like X has implemented the new rules, when trying to view adult content I’m getting the message ‘Due to local laws, we are temporarily restricting access to this content until X estimates your age’

[mr.bluesky]

Looks like X has implemented the new rules, when trying to view adult content I’m getting the message ‘Due to local laws, we are temporarily restricting access to this content until X estimates your age’

I've noticed a few others have as well ( strictly in the name of research I'll have you know  )

[bobby1973]

Does anyone know if there is any other way of getting on to porn sites as  my computer is old and doesn't have a camera
They all say I need to open the camera but I don't have one 

[whaleears]

If you're able to install a VPN. If you're using Chrome, Urban VPN is free & easy to install (there's how to videos and everything.)

[bobby1973]

Sorry what's a VPN ?

[bigden40]

Sorry what's a VPN ?

VPN stands for virtual private network - a service that protects your internet connection and privacy online. VPNs create an encrypted tunnel for your data, protect your online identity by hiding your IP address, and allow you to use public Wi-Fi hotspots safely.

Importantly they also allow you to appear as if you’re accessing from a location other than the UK.

[bobby1973]

Great thank you
Will give it a try

[whaleears]

External Link/Members Only


Here's a mad work around that works.
People starting to get really pissy about it all now, especially right wing free speech wankers.

[whaleears]

External Link/Members Only

For some who are a bit less internet savvy, if you do use a VPN, don't set the country to the UK.

[bigden40]

A bit of a rant but some interesting points here

External Link/Members Only

[Mkhelen]

Vote against this bullshit

External Link/Members Only

[PepeMAGA]

Looks like X has implemented the new rules, when trying to view adult content I’m getting the message ‘Due to local laws, we are temporarily restricting access to this content until X estimates your age’

Yes annoying given that that's the only reason I go on there and they don't currently give you a way to verify.