Pornhub blocks access to users in Utah over age verification law

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Users trying to access Pornhub in Utah were denied access Tuesday after the adult website cut off admission over the state's age verification law. 

Those hoping to get on the site in Uthan were greeted with a lengthy message explaining why they were blocked in a video message from Cherie Deville, an adult-film actress, the New York Post reported.

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In this photo illustration a PornHub logo seen displayed on a smartphone screen in Athens, Greece on March 16, 2022. Users in Utah were denied access to the adult website over the state's age verification law. ( (Photo by Nikolas Kokovlis/NurPhoto via Getty Images))

"As you may know, your elected officials in Utah are requiring us to verify your age before allowing you access to our website," the message reads. "While safety and compliance are at the forefront of our mission, giving your ID card every time you want to visit an adult platform is not the most effective solution to protecting our users and, in fact, will put children and your privacy at risk."

"Until a real solution is offered, we have made the difficult decision to completely disable access to our website in Utah," Deville added.

The new regulation requires government-issued ID to access the adult website instead of using their device. The company asked visitors to contact their local elected officials to urge an alternative method of identification.

The law in question, Senate Bill 287, requires adult websites to use age verification. It was unanimously passed last year. The bill is similar to legislation passed in Louisiana that went into effect this year. 

A Pornhub spokesperson told Fox News Digital that traffic in Louisiana dropped 80% since the law went into effect. Users mostly likely moved to other websites with fewer compliance measures and who refuse to comply with ID verification laws. 

Dozens of plaintiffs are accusing Pornhub and its parent company, MindGeek, of monetizing sexual abuse in a lawsuit. (Adrien Fillon/NurPhoto)

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Pornhub has been dogged by allegations that it facilitates abusive material and does not do enough to verify the age of those who upload content. 

MindGeek, which owns the site, previously told Fox News Digital it has a "zero tolerance for illegal material or the bad actors who attempt to upload it on the internet," and its "policy is to immediately remove any content that is found to be in violation of our terms of service, and to review any material that is reported by users."

Fox News Digital has reached out to Pornhub for comment.