this post was submitted on 04 Jun 2025
312 points (99.1% liked)

World News

47217 readers
2031 users here now

A community for discussing events around the World

Rules:

Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.

We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.

All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.


Lemmy World Partners

News [email protected]

Politics [email protected]

World Politics [email protected]


Recommendations

For Firefox users, there is media bias / propaganda / fact check plugin.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/media-bias-fact-check/

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 

Aylo, the company that owns porn sites like Pornhub, YouPorn, and RedTube, is planning to suspend service in France in protest of a new law that will require porn companies to verify the age of visitors. The deadline for porn sites to implement age verification is June 7 but Pornhub will block users starting Wednesday, June 4, according to France24.

Websites will be required to verify a user’s age using a credit card or a government-issued ID document. France’s law requires porn companies to provide an option for age verification that relies on a third party, hypothetically protecting the user’s privacy. But Aylo has argued that third-party verification puts private information at risk of hacks and leaks.

top 47 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] [email protected] 129 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (1 children)

Fake ass protectionism. IDs is just a way to have the government spy on your private sexual preferences. Any kid can see porn if they want to. This doesn’t stop shit. Porn can be pirated and it’s accessible in other countries with a VPN. This bullshit law is nothing but a way for the government to invade privacy.

[–] [email protected] 58 points 4 days ago

Whatever website people use instead of pornhub will be available to all ages by virtue of not following any laws.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 days ago

Requiring sites to verify users without presenting them with a digital solution to do that is wild

You cannot tell people that they should send copies of their ID to random porn sites lmao

[–] [email protected] 33 points 3 days ago

Not a reliable prevention method.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 2 days ago

I am sure the fact that Pornhubs owners have their own AgeID solution that they have tried to sell to governments like the UK and didn't win exclusive rights has nothing to do with their decision to pull out of France.

https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/porn-age-verification-laws-ageid-youporn-pornhub-mindgeek-uk-government-a8251791.html

[–] [email protected] 55 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I'm sure the editor who wrote that headline got a good giggle out of that.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Oh they did. Having worked as an editor in a newsroom I can assure you that the cheeky headline is never, ever accidental and the person who wrote it is always, always stroking themselves over how clever they are. They live for this shit.

[–] [email protected] 71 points 4 days ago

Title is perfect

[–] [email protected] 23 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Sounds like it's time for the French to get French

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 days ago (3 children)

What, specifically, does that mean in this context?

[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 days ago

The French are known to protest like no other.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

There's been a meme going around America lately that we need to take some inspiration from our French cousins. But it sounds like they need to find some more of that fire themselves if this is the state of things (I'm also including the smoking ban the article mentions)

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago
[–] untakenusername 39 points 4 days ago (2 children)

govts should stop making unenforceable laws

like the French govgt shouldn't even be considering making something like this if the website can just pull out of the country and still get all the traffic with vpns and tor

[–] [email protected] 47 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Governments are using these kind of things to distract people from the reality that the world is starting to boil over, the right wing has control, and the rich are becoming even richer to prepare for the inevitable climate apocalypse. They use things like same-sex marriage, abortion, pornography, drugs, tariffs, taxes, and all of those other fun things that people love to scream and yell about.

[–] [email protected] 20 points 4 days ago

They want a culture war, not a class war

Tale as old as time

Keep the peasants bickering amongst themselves and they won’t rebel against the lords and kings

[–] [email protected] 11 points 4 days ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 8 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Yes, sorry, indeed that as well. There is such a long list of shit distracting us from reality

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 days ago

Yeah any sort of distraction, including infighting.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 4 days ago

Modern morality policing?

[–] [email protected] 39 points 4 days ago (5 children)

Will they also make age verification required to go to the beaches in France too?

Perfect French beach picture here https://nudebeachmap.com/places/cap-dagde/

[–] [email protected] 16 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Nude beaches are not porn. Terrible comparison.

[–] 6nk06 9 points 3 days ago

I agree with you, but the Cap d'Agde has orgies all over the town if you know where to go, it's not really for nudists.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 days ago

Perhaps not but to the type of people that proposed this legislation I guarantee you they think it is.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 4 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

It's just that it's really frowned upon if you beat the monkey on those beaches.

Plus the sand is coarse and rough and irritating and gets everywhere...

[–] [email protected] 8 points 4 days ago

That is a very cool website.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

That's one way to see a live goatse in the wild if you're not careful 😅

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 days ago (1 children)

This move hasn't done anything for changing the laws in Texas.

[–] samus12345 31 points 3 days ago (1 children)

It protects PornHub from litigation, though.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 days ago

Which is the point of the legislation. It's not about protecting kids. It's going after people they consider their enemies.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 days ago
[–] [email protected] 18 points 4 days ago

thinkofdachildra strikes again

[–] [email protected] 20 points 4 days ago (1 children)

On an entirely-unrelated note, I would make the following observations:

[–] [email protected] 8 points 4 days ago

French is also used in Belgium, and in Switzerland somewhat. Plenty of vpn locations to choose from.

Also iirc it's just a shitty DNS block just like our piratebay block, so just changing your DNS to anything not hosted in France should work

[–] SonicBlue03 21 points 4 days ago

Isn't Pulling Out a category on Pornhub?

[–] [email protected] 12 points 4 days ago

“Pulling out” 💦

[–] [email protected] 12 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

Too late France is already pregnant!

Serious note the only way to fight these laws is to make the ip addresses of visitors publicly available.

Watch as every high profile person suddenly switches position

[–] [email protected] 8 points 4 days ago (2 children)

XVideos will be used more.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago

Pornhub seems to be the sacrificial site so all the other MindGeek sites can keep going.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago

I know nothing of their ethics, but PornHub looking like it’s made for a 2009 iPhone will always steer me to Xvideos

[–] [email protected] 9 points 4 days ago

Where you going Stepbrother?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 4 days ago

How do I now keep my baguette in good condition?

[–] [email protected] -3 points 4 days ago