British regulator takes a hard look at Pornhub's Apple-powered age checks

Ofcom, the British communications regulator, has launched an investigation into Pornhub's use of Apple-based age checks to protect children from accessing its adult content. The inquiry will determine if Aylo, Pornhub's parent company, adhered to age assurance duties imposed by the Online Safety Act (OSA) in July 2025. In May 2026, Pornhub implemented a new age assurance process for some UK users, relying on Apple's age check signals.

Ofcom's investigation focuses on how Aylo implemented and tested this process, not Apple's system itself. Following the regulation, Pornhub restricted new UK users to the site on February 2, while existing users who had verified their age retained access. However, the measure proved ineffective, with Pornhub's UK traffic plummeting 77 percent by October 2026.

Aylo partially lifted the restriction in May 2026 for eligible UK users who confirmed their age via Apple. The regulator will scrutinize the effectiveness of Pornhub's age assurance process and Aylo's thorough testing and due diligence before deployment. Online age checks are crucial in preventing children from encountering harmful content.

Ofcom expects tech firms to ensure age checks' high effectiveness before implementation. If Ofcom finds potential noncompliance, it may impose fines of up to £18 million or 10 percent of global revenue, whichever is higher, and require remediation.