Internet Porn Site Regulation

It doesn't appear to have been mentioned in the forum, but age verification is now official policy, as it was mentioned in the Queen's speech for the state opening of parliament last month that "all websites containing pornographic images will require age verification for access".

(20-06-2016 12:38 )bigglesworth Wrote:  It doesn't appear to have been mentioned in the forum, but age verification is now official policy, as it was mentioned in the Queen's speech for the state opening of parliament last month that "all websites containing pornographic images will require age verification for access".

Its been official policy since they put in their manifesto last year.

(20-06-2016 18:02 )301 Wrote:  Its been official policy since they put in their manifesto last year.

A manifesto pledge cannot be regarded as 'official policy' as there is no guarantee that the party making the pledge would get elected.

Not to mention that manifesto pledges are not always acted upon anyway. The list of Conservative manifesto pledges from 2010 that didn't happen is quite a long one. The last Labour government fared no better with their manifesto pledges either, with many of those not being met.

(20-06-2016 18:51 )Davy Crockett Wrote:  

(20-06-2016 18:02 )301 Wrote:  Its been official policy since they put in their manifesto last year.

The list of Conservative manifesto pledges from 2010 that didn't happen is quite a long one.

That what different since they had to modify their policy for the liberal democrats.

The policy is pointless anyway as if you have a VPN with a non-uk IP address you could get pass the AV. The only way a policy like that could work is if the EU and FCC work together to create a standard for it which is unlikely to happen due to the 1st amendment.

The age verification bill (The Digital Economy Bill) went before parliament today. It includes measures to fine (commercial) website operators £250,000 (or more) if they allow the under-aged to view porn content.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/07/05/...ification/

The bill :

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa.../17045.pdf

The whole thing seems to be a bit vague on detail in terms of how this is to be implemented, though it does make mention of an 'Age Verification Registrar' who will oversee it and hand out the fines. Sounds like a nice little job for 'one of the boys', no doubt on a six figure salary plus expenses!

On the face of it, this could have implications for this site. Although strictly speaking this isn't a commercial site, it does carry ads, which brings in a revenue, which could put it in the spotlight for the purposes of this law. Also, it could be argued that the bulk of the content is not pornographic as it it readily available on the tv, but there are bare breasts aplenty, and some of the pictures posted are definitely pornographic in nature. So, theoretically, this site could fall within the scope of this law, and be required to implement a suitable age verification system or suffer the consequences!

(05-07-2016 18:07 )munch1917 Wrote:  this isn't a commercial site, it does carry ads, which brings in a revenue

The site gets a cut of the call revenue when someone calls using the links at the top aswell.

(05-07-2016 18:07 )munch1917 Wrote:  Although strictly speaking this isn't a commercial site, it does carry ads,

I suspect that even one single ad on a site will qualify it as commercial for the purposes of this bill.

Is there any indication yet of how you would verify your age? I couldn't see this explained in the bill.

(05-07-2016 21:40 )BarrieBF Wrote:  I suspect that even one single ad on a site will qualify it as commercial for the purposes of this bill.

You're probably right, but if so that makes Twitter a site which would have to introduce age verification if they want to comply with UK law. Twitter has a great deal of adult material posted there and takes advertising.

(05-07-2016 22:18 )admiral decker Wrote:  ... but if so that makes Twitter a site which would have to introduce age verification if they want to comply with UK law ...

This is where it all gets a bit silly and somewhat vague.
On a quick read, these rules appear to apply to all sites offering content into the UK, which is basically the entire internet. How are they expecting to police that for overseas operators who will most likely simply ignore them?
As far as twitter is concerned, I think they will be safe. Yes they probably qualify as a commercial site, and yes they carry pornographic content, but they are not strictly making money by providing that pornographic content, which the bill seems to define as the requirement, their pornographic content is just a small part of what they carry.

The bill states that this new Regulator will set out further clarification on what sort of sites will come under its jurisdiction (as well as what constitutes suitable age verification), so basically, he/she gets carte blanche to make their own rules. Very handy.

Quick recap for anyone who may have missed it :
The dreaded Snoopers Charter got passed last week, allowing the government/spooks to monitor everything we do online.
Also, it has been agreed that the BBFC will act as regulators for the age verification system on web sites, taking over from the now defunct ATVOD.

One 'interesting' side effect is the apparent ressurection of the seemingly random attack on various sex acts being portrayed. We went down this road before, and it seemed to go away somewhat, but is back again. It seems certain acts such as urination, menstruation, female ejaculation, and certain spankings, will fall victim to this regulation. As these acts are deemed not suitable for R18 certification in film/videos, they will also be deemed unsuitable for web content, and sites depicting such acts may be blocked by the already extensive UK web blockade.

This could have far reaching consequences.
What of the likes of the cam sites? Sites such as MFC often have female ejaculation, could they be blocked?
What about sex education sites giving valuable menstruation advice for young girls and their parents?

Of course it still remains to be seen how/if some of the measures here will actually be implemented. The requirement for ISP's to keep a record of every users web traffic is a pretty mammoth undertaking that won't and can't be implemented in any kind of hurry, the IT infrastructure needed for such a thing is mind boggling, and not cheap, so expect bills to increase if it ever actually happens.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2...ornography