Pornhub prepares to block five more states rather than check IDs

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Technical approaches to age verification

  • Multiple ideas suggested: OpenID-style protocols, Apple digital IDs with FaceID, EU/German/Estonian eID cards, US DMV smartcards, W3C Verifiable Credentials, zk-proofs, government “age attestation” APIs.
  • Some argue cryptographic systems can give “over 18” proofs without sharing identity, using short-lived, site-specific tokens, rate limiting, and zero-knowledge proofs.
  • Others claim this is “literally impossible” without either shareable tokens that kids can reuse or some revocation/centralization that breaks true zero-knowledge.
  • Practical barriers noted: hardware readers, browser support, app-store hostility to porn, and kids simply using parents’ IDs or devices.

Centralization, trust, and surveillance concerns

  • Strong worry that any centralized verifier (Apple, government, OpenID provider, banks, etc.) gains visibility into porn use and broad browsing habits.
  • Some see this as a Trojan horse for de-anonymizing the internet, creating a slippery slope from porn verification to identity requirements for dating, email, news, and more.
  • Debate over whether a government-run system is acceptable:
    • Pro: government already issues physical IDs; could run privacy-preserving APIs; we already trust it with far more dangerous powers.
    • Con: chilling effects, potential authoritarian abuse, silent refusal or manipulation, and doubt that “no logs” guarantees would be honored.

Motivations and incentives

  • Many believe the stated “protect the children” rationale is a wedge issue; real goals include broader monitoring and control, or moral/religious anti-porn crusades.
  • View that laws intentionally make compliance nearly impossible to achieve a de-facto porn ban.
  • Speculation that Pornhub’s blocking tactic is driven by liability avoidance, operational cost, and preserving user trust/traffic, but also acts as PR and political pressure.

Alternative solutions and effectiveness

  • Several propose shifting enforcement to client or ISP-level parental controls and content headers, rather than server-side identity checks.
  • Skepticism that any remote age verification can reliably stop motivated minors; “rum runners” and shared IDs likely persist.
  • Concern that pushing Pornhub out just drives users (including kids) to more extreme, less regulated sites and VPNs.