❓WHAT HAPPENED: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Utah announced a settlement action and consent order against a number of adult content websites, including Pornhub and RedTube, that are operated by Aylo (formerly MindGeek).
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Commissioner Melissa Holyoak, FTC’s Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection, Christopher Mufarrige, Utah state officials, Pornhub, RedTube, YouPorn, and Aylo.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The FTC announced the settlement action and consent order on Wednesday, September 3, 2025.
💬KEY QUOTE: “Pornhub’s operators turned a blind eye to the proliferation of videos depicting the sexual abuse of children on its sites so it could profit off this exploitation. Under the order we’re announcing today, Pornhub’s operators will be required to take concrete steps to block this harmful content and ensure that those who appear in videos on their sites are consenting adults.” — Christopher Mufarrige, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection
🎯IMPACT: The settlement action and consent order impose a $15 million federal fine against Aylo, which will be suspended if the company pays a lesser $5 million fine to Utah. Additionally, Aylo will be required to no longer misrepresent its policies regarding child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and nonconsensual material (NCM).
President Donald J. Trump‘s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced on Wednesday that it will join Utah in a settlement action and consent order against a number of adult content websites, including Pornhub and RedTube. The Utah Attorney General’s office and the FTC contend the websites “deceived users by doing little to block tens of thousands of videos and photos featuring child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and nonconsensual material (NCM) despite claiming that this content was ‘strictly prohibited.'”
“Pornhub’s operators turned a blind eye to the proliferation of videos depicting the sexual abuse of children on its sites so it could profit off this exploitation,” the FTC’s Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection, Christopher Mufarrige, said in a statement. He continued: “Under the order we’re announcing today, Pornhub’s operators will be required to take concrete steps to block this harmful content and ensure that those who appear in videos on their sites are consenting adults.”
FTC Commissioner Melissa Holyoak accused the adult content websites of having “inflicted grave harm on children and nonconsenting adults by promoting and distributing truly horrific material online.” She added: “As today’s complaint and proposed order make clear, the FTC will use every tool in its arsenal to stop such outrageous conduct.”
The proposed settlement and consent order take direct action against Pornhub’s parent company, Aylo—formerly known as MindGeek—which operates more than 100 pornographic photo and video-streaming websites. Among Aylo’s largest pornographic website properties are Pornhub, YouPorn, and RedTube, which boast hundreds of millions of monthly visitors in the United States alone.
Utah and the FTC contend that Aylo “deceived users by claiming it has zero tolerance for CSAM and works to block CSAM and NCM on its sites by, among other things, taking prompt action when videos are flagged by users.” However, in reality, the company—according to Utah’s complaint—failed to take any concrete action to remove flagged content, ban uploaders of CSAM, or prevent the reupload of removed content.
The settlement action and consent order impose a $15 million federal fine against Aylo, which will be suspended if the company pays a lesser $5 million fine to Utah. Additionally, Aylo will be required to no longer misrepresent its policies regarding CSAM and NCM.
Other provisions include a requirement for Aylo to enact “a program to prevent the publication or dissemination of CSAM and NCM content,” a thorough verification system for those appearing in uploaded content, and to remove offending content uploaded prior to the “implementation of the CSAM and NCM prevention program.”
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