Sites hosting adult content could be removed from search results and blocked from being linked to on social media in Australia unless they verify the ages of users trying to access them, according to a draft code from the industry published on Tuesday.
Age guaranteeing for pornography and online gambling content precedes the development of age guarantee technology for teenagers accessing social media, but there will be a crossover for sites like X, which host adult content.
The draft codes, which would come into force in 2025, will apply to internet sites, social networks, video games, search engines, game companies, application developers and Web service providers, among others.
The code is versatile in terms of how it will require websites to verify the age of users and follows similar options to the UK plan that is still being rolled out. Examples include photo identification verification, facial age estimation, verification of credit cards, wallets or digital identification systems, or certification of a parent or guardian. However, simply stating one's own age (indicating, for example, date of birth) will not be enough.
The approach to age verification will likely be the same as that used for teen age verifications on social media. The Albanian government is in the process of conducting a test of such technologies.
The codes have been developed by the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (Amta), the Communications Alliance, the Consumer Electronics Suppliers Association (CESA), the Digital Trade Group Inc. (Digi) and the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA).
In the United States, where age controls have been implemented in some states, the porn website Pornhub has blocked access to users in those states. As of June, Pornhub has blocked more than half a dozen states from complying with age guarantee laws. Users in those states have reportedly resorted to using digital private network (VPN) connections to bypass the block.
Dr Jennifer Duxbury, director of policy, regulatory affairs and research at Digi, told Guardian Australia that the code covers the entire digital ecosystem, which meant that if a website did not comply, there were ways to limit access through searches or social networks.
“You have these layers of protection built into these codes, which don't exist in other jurisdictions, as I understand it,” he said.
Duxbury said the eSafety commissioner, as “the best-resourced regulator in the world,” would have powers to enforce those codes.
“So all of those things would work as a pretty strong incentive, I would suggest, on porn sites to comply with these codes,” he said.
“However, we do not speak on behalf of the porn industry and I cannot predict what their reaction might be, whether they would withdraw from the market or what the possible outcome is.”
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Pornhub has been contacted for comment.
While adult sites may be blocked for Australian users in searches and links on social media, users will still be able to type the URL of the website to access the site.
The move is a step away from the Rudd-Gillard Labor government's attempt to introduce mandatory web filtering and the Coalition's previous plan to introduce opt-out web filtering which was dropped just before the 2013 election. codes, Web service providers will not be required to block access to non-compliant websites, but they will be required to make optional filters available to customers who request them.
Documents released under FoI by the eSafety commissioner suggest that age assurance will remain a complex issue for the industry to resolve, stating: “No country has implemented a seamless age verification mandate.”
Submissions on the draft code will be accepted until November 22, and the eSafety commissioner will request that the code be submitted for review by December 19, 2024. Once the code is registered, the commissioner will be able to enforce it.
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