British regulator takes a hard look at Pornhub's Apple-powered age checks

Ofcom has opened an investigation into whether Pornhub's Apple-based age checks are effective enough to keep children away from its adult content.

The investigation will examine whether Pornhub owner Aylo complied with age assurance duties that came into force under the Online Safety Act (OSA) in July 2025.

Pornhub introduced a new age assurance process for some UK users in May 2026, relying on signals supplied by Apple.

The signals indicate that an iOS user may have completed Apple's age checks.

Ofcom stressed that its investigation concerns how Aylo implemented and tested the resulting process, not how Apple operates its system.

Aylo restricted Pornhub to new UK users on February 2 after arguing that the OSA had diverted visitors toward less regulated sites rather than protecting children.

Existing users who had already verified their age retained access.

The decision followed a steep decline in traffic: Pornhub's UK visits fell 47 percent shortly after the rules took effect and were reportedly down 77 percent by October.

In May, Aylo partially reversed the restriction for eligible UK users who had confirmed their age through Apple.

New users on Android, PCs, and other platforms remain locked out.

The Register contacted Aylo for comment.

"Online age checks are a vital protection to prevent children from encountering inappropriate or harmful material, including pornography," said George Lusty, director of enforcement at Ofcom.

"We expect tech firms to ensure age checks are highly effective before introducing them.

Anything less could leave children at risk." Ofcom will assess both the effectiveness of Pornhub's age assurance process and whether Aylo conducted sufficient testing and due diligence before deploying it.