Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, CONSUMER PROTECTION NEWS: Pornhub operators to pay $5 million to settle FTC claims over failure to block illegal content, (Sep 4, 2025)

By Jody Coultas, J.D.

The websites allegedly allowed child sexual abuse and nonconsensual videos to be uploaded.

Pornhub and other pornography-streaming sites allegedly failed to block tens of thousands of videos and photos featuring child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and nonconsensual material (NCM) despite claiming that content of that type was not available on the sites, according to the FTC and State of Utah. Aylo Group, the operator of Pornhub, agreed to pay $5 million to settle the claims and will set up a program to prevent the distribution of the content at issue under the terms of a proposed settlement (FTC v. Aylo Group Ltd., No. 2:25-cv-00752 (D. Utah Sept. 3, 2025)).

Aylo, formerly known as MindGeek, operates more than 100 pornographic photo and video-streaming websites including free ad-based “tube” sites such as Pornhub, YouPorn and RedTube, which allow users to upload their own videos, and paid sites including Pornhub Premium.

The FTC and State of Utah alleged that Aylo deceived users by claiming it has zero tolerance for CSAM and blocked CSAM and NCM on its sites by, among other things, taking prompt action when videos are flagged by users. Despite claims to the contrary, Aylo failed to review videos flagged by users, did not ban uploaders of CSAM from further use of their websites, did not prevent the reupload of CSAM that Aylo had identified, and did not review all videos before they went live for CSAM or NCM.

Until December 2020, anyone could upload pornographic videos and photos and users were allegedly urged to contribute content involving “young girl,” “schoolgirl” and similar topics. Pornhub also allegedly licensed and owned CSAM and NCM content with titles such as “Brunette Girl was Raped.” Paperwork verifying the age and identity of individuals featured in some of the content posted on its sites was not properly maintained.

In 2021, conducted audits of its content when credit card processors threatened to impose fines or cut off access to their services and media started reporting on the issue. Audits revealed tens of thousands of CSAM and NCM videos. However, Aylo allegedly ignored or overruled efforts by its compliance team to remove such content. Content that was flagged on Pornhub and Pornhub Premium was allowed to remain on their other websites. Aylo did not even review content flagged as CSAM and NCM until it received at least 16 flags.

It also claimed it would utilize fingerprinting technology to block users from re-uploading CSAM that had been removed, but the technology failed to effectively prevent such content from being re-uploaded to the site. Aylo also failed to block individuals who uploaded CSAM despite promising to ban such users. Even when it began taking action against uploaders of CSAM in October 2022, it only prohibited the user from making a new account under the same username or email address but did not prevent them from creating a new account using an alternate email address and username.

Aylo used a third-party vendor to verify the identities of people seeking to participate in its model program. However, the company failed to disclose that it obtains the data from the vendor and retains it indefinitely. Aylo also told its models that they could “trust that their personal data remains secure” yet failed to use standard security measures to protect the data. The complaint also alleged that Aylo deceived consumers by failing to protect the privacy and security of data—such as their dates of birth, Social Security numbers and government-issued IDs—uploaded by people enrolled in their model program, which included those who appear in their videos.

Chairman Ferguson explained that the conduct at issue fell under the FTC’s purview because distribution of the materials at issue was an unfair practices and that Aylo deceived consumers and its business partners that its practices were above board.

The $15 million penalty will be suspended after payment of $5 million to Utah. The proposed settlement permanently prohibits Aylo from misrepresenting its practices related to preventing the posting and proliferation of CSAM and NCM on its websites. Aylo also will be required to take multiple actions to address the deceptive and unfair conduct outlined in the complaint including:

• Implement a program to prevent the publication or dissemination of CSAM and NCM content, which must include policies, procedures and technical measures to ensure that such content is not published on its websites and a process to respond to reports about CSAM and NCM content on its websites;

• Implement a system to verify that people who appear in videos or photos on its websites are adults and have provided consent to the sexual conduct as well as its production and publication;

• Remove content uploaded prior to the implementation of the CSAM and NCM prevention program until Aylo verifies that the individuals participating in those videos were at least 18 at the time the content was created and consented to the sexual conduct and its production and publication;

• Post a notice on its website informing users about the FTC’s and Utah’s allegations and the requirements of the proposed order; and

• Implement a comprehensive privacy and information security program to address the privacy and security issues detailed in the complaint.

Companies: Aylo Group Ltd.

News: ConsumerProtection FederalTradeCommissionNews UtahNews