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Topics: US News
Claire Reid
Residents of Louisiana will have to provide government ID to access any sites that contain more than 33.3 percent pornographic material, such as Pornhub.
A new law - known as HB 142 - was passed late last year meaning anyone living in Louisiana who wants to access adult material must verify their age first.
Republican state representative Laurie Schlegel said: “Pornography is destroying our children and they’re getting unlimited access to it on the internet and so if the pornography companies aren’t going to be responsible, I thought we need to go ahead and hold them accountable.”
It will also be the responsibility of the websites - such as Pornhub - to ensure age verification is required when people in Louisiana attempt to access adult material - and Schlegel has warned there could be harsh consequences for any sites that don’t.
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She said: “Someone could sue on behalf of their child; they can sue if children are getting access to pornography. So, it would be up to the user to sue the company for not verifying age first.”
In a video shared online by @fodderyfodder, anyone in Louisiana attempting to access Pornhub is met with a message that reads: "Louisiana law now requires us to put in place a process for verifying the age of users who connect to our site from Louisiana.
"The privacy and security of the Pornhub community is our priority, and we thank you for your cooperation."
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There’s then a large button with ‘check my age’ written across it for people to click.
Schlegel said that websites that would require the age verifications would work with LA Wallet, which requires a Louisiana state ID or driver's license.
Sara Kelley, project manager with Envoc, has urged residents to download the LA Wallet app if they haven’t already.
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She told Fox: “I mean, I think it’s a must-have for anyone who has a Louisiana state ID or driver’s license.”
However, she did go on to say there are other ways Louisianans can confirm their age, if they don't have access to LA Wallet - and stressed that the companies involved must not retain any personal identification after the process is complete.
“It doesn’t identify your date of birth, it doesn’t identify who you are, where you live, what part of the state you’re in, or any information from your device or from your actual ID. It just returns that age to say that yes, this person is old enough to be allowed to go in,” she added.