Government's age-check scheme for online porn is making a comeback

The new law will apply to commercial porn sites, as well as those allowing user-generated content like Reddit

The UK government has confirmed that it is trying again to introduce 'porn-block' - a controversial internet age verification system - as part of attempts to keep under-18s away from porn sites.

In an announcement coinciding with Safer Internet Day, Digital Minister Chris Philp said the government intends to strengthen the Online Safety Bill with a new legal duty that would require all websites publishing pornography - whether an actual porn site or one that simply allows user generated content - to put stringent age checks in place.

The communications regulator Ofcom would have the power to impose penalties on sites that fail to comply: a fine of up to 10 per cent of their annual global turnover, or entirely blocking them in the UK.

Individuals in charge of those websites could also be held criminally liable if they refuse to cooperate with Ofcom.

The move comes more than two years after the government's previous failed attempt to introduce legislation as part of the Digital Economy Act of 2017, requiring porn website to use an age verification system.

The law was supposed to take effect in 2018, but was postponed twice before being scrapped in October 2019.

The government first introduced the idea of a 'porn block' in 2015, with the aim of preventing under-18s from accessing adult websites from the UK.

All websites 'more than one-third pornographic' would have been covered under the law, meaning the likes of Reddit, Imgur and Twitter would be exempt from the ban, despite hosting pornographic content themselves.

At that time, the proposal only focused on commercial websites and apps, and allowed user-generated content.

Privacy campaigners opposed the plan from day one, arguing that it would enable people's browsing habits to be closely tracked, potentially leading to blackmail and online surveillance. There were also many, many practical and technical issues associated with implementing the block.

In a 2020 survey titled 'Young People, Pornography and Age Verification', the British Board of Film Classification found that 51 per cent of children aged 11-13 years old have seen pornography - and that figure is likely conservative.

Blocking pornography has public support. A 2021 survey of more than 2,100 UK adults, commissioned by Christian charity CARE, found 81 per cent of respondents agreeing with the statement, 'the government should implement age verification to protect children from all online pornography'.

In the same survey, 79.5 per cent of people said 'there should be an age limit of 18 years for access to online pornography'.

These sentiments ignore any practical, technical and privacy issues, of course.

If the proposed porn block comes into effect, companies themselves will be responsible for determining how to comply with their new legal obligation, according to the government.

The law will not require the use of specific age verification techniques, although the government says any technologies used must be effective, secure and privacy-preserving.

All companies who use or develop this technology will be required to follow the UK's strict data protection standards or face enforcement action from the Information Commissioner's Office.