Pornhub returns to Australia but only for adults with Apple devices
The world's most popular porn site went dark in March in Australia due to age verification laws.
Pornhub has returned to Australia, eight months after going dark because of age-verification laws, but only adults using Apple devices will be able to access the site.
On Wednesday, parent company Aylo said it was restoring access for "eligible adult users in Australia" who have "confirmed their age through Apple's Australian age-verification process".
The world's biggest porn site exited the Australian market in March, saying the new laws requiring users to prove they were over 18 would not protect children and "instead creates harms relating to data privacy" and exposure to content on non-compliant platforms.
Apple has recently rolled out new age checks in Australia, following a launch in the UK.
In March, Australia brought in tougher laws requiring users to prove they were over 18 to access adult content such as porn, R-rated video games and sexually explicit AI chatbots.
The country's online safety regulator said the changes would protect children from harmful content, and platforms would face fines for breaches.
Critics argued there would be problems with data privacy and with users finding ways to bypass age-verification technologies such as facial recognition, digital IDs and credit card details.
Aylo said it was returning to Australia because Apple has "set a benchmark" by making default child safety features available on all devices unless owners confirm they are adults.
In effect, this makes "every phone or tablet kid-safe as a starting point," it said.
"For years, Aylo has advocated for device-based age verification as the most effective and privacy-protecting approach to help prevent minors from accessing age-inappropriate content online," said Aylo's vice-president of brand and community Alex Kekesi.
Australians with Apple devices that have been "age-verified" will be "served a standard adult users experience", she said.
Kekesi added that having child safety features enabled by default means adults do not have to "surrender unnecessary personal information to multiple apps and websites".
She also said it reduces the effectiveness of virtual private networks (VPNs) used to get around age-verification systems.
VPNs are often used to make a site believe a user is connecting from another country, which can give that user access to the site.