Recently, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed a new age verification law for pornographic websites in 2023. This law, known as HB 1181, is part of a trend seen in various states across the country.
The main provision of HB 1181 requires websites that feature more than one-third of sexual content harmful to minors to implement 'reasonable age verification methods' to ensure that users are at least 18 years old. Failure to comply with this requirement can result in civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation. Additionally, if a minor manages to access sexual material due to the lack of proper age verification, the law allows for fines of up to $250,000.
However, critics of the law have pointed out a significant exemption. The law does not apply to search engines and social media platforms, even though these platforms are known for hosting and sharing pornographic content.
This new law reflects a growing concern among lawmakers regarding minors' access to explicit material online. By imposing strict age verification requirements on certain websites, Texas aims to protect young individuals from being exposed to inappropriate content.
