&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Porn website fined £1 mn by UK watchdog for failing age checks")
Britain's media watchdog on Thursday slapped a £1 million ($1.3 million) fine on a company for failing to ensure robust age checks on its 18 pornography websites.
Ofcom confirmed that the fine against the AVS Group was the largest penalty yet under Britain's Online Safety Act, which came into effect in July to prevent children from accessing harmful online content.
The new rules require porn sites to carry out strict age verification checks or face hefty fines.
The measures also aim to protect youngsters from accessing content relating to suicide, self-harm and eating disorders.
"While AVS has implemented what it refers to as age verification, we do not consider it to be highly effective, and have fined the company £1,000,000," Ofcom said in a press release.
The group must implement an appropriate age-check system within 72 hours, or face further daily fines, the watchdog warned.
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It was also slapped with an additional £50,000 fine for failing to respond to Ofcom's information request.
Since July 25, websites, social media and video-sharing platforms hosting potentially harmful content have been required to implement strict age verification through tools such as facial imagery or credit card checks.
Those found to be failing can face fines of up to £18 million or 10 per cent of qualifying worldwide revenue, whichever is greater.
In the most serious cases, Ofcom can take legal action to block access to the site or platform concerned from the UK.
The new regime has been hailed by campaigners as a milestone in their years-long battle for stronger regulations but criticised by some -- particularly those on the political right -- as an assault on free speech.
Its rollout has reportedly prompted a huge spike in downloads of virtual private network (VPN) software, which allows browsers to appear as if they are in another country, potentially bypassing some website restrictions.
Soon after the rules came into force, Ofcom launched investigations into 34 porn websites, including those run by AVS, over possible compliance failures.
Those probes are ongoing, Ofcom confirmed Thursday.