Demand for virtual private network (VPN) services in Texas increased by 234.8 percent the day after a new state law took effect requiring age verification to access pornographic websites according to an analysis by vpnMentor.
The law took effect on March 14 after which websites posting pornographic content were required to insist visitors from Texas provided age verification, such as a photographic ID, before being allowed access. In response, Pornhub, one of the leading adult entertainment websites, blocked access to its content in Texas branding the new system "ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous."
Texas is the eighth state to require age verification for access to pornography online as part of lawmakers' effort to prevent minors from accessing the material. However, critics say the new laws de facto block the wider population of adults, constituting a First Amendment violation. Age verification legislation has also come into effect in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Utah and Virginia, resulting in Pornhub blocking access to its content in all eight states.
Research conducted by vpnMentor, a group that says it is dedicated to helping "people protect their online privacy," found a 234.8 percent increase in VPN demand from Texas on March 15, a day after the new legislation took effect.
Explaining the vpnMentor methodology to Newsweek, Lisa Taylor, a research group representative for the organization, said: "To measure the impact of the Pornhub ban in Texas on VPN demand, the vpnMentor research team compiled data from a variety of sources. The team used internal tools to assess changes in terms of search volume, web traffic, and clicks related to VPN services. This data was then used to estimate the increase in VPN demand in Texas following the ban.
"To calculate the surge, the team compared VPN demand before the ban began to data samples of VPN demand from the day following the ban. This enabled the team to identify a surge in demand for VPN services in Texas and to calculate the extent of the increase."
A spokesperson for Pornhub declined to comment on the specifics of the new data when contacted by Newsweek but reiterated the company's view that the legislation is "ineffectual."
Newsweek has contacted the press office of Texas Governor Greg Abbott for comment by email.
VPNs work by creating an encrypted connection through which individuals can access the internet whilst keeping their private data (such as location and IP address) hidden. These can be used to get around website blocks imposed only on certain regions.
Previously, vpnMentor said it found demand for VPNs in Utah exploded by 967 percent in the 24 hours following an online pornography age verification law took effect in Utah in May 2023.
Data provided to Newsweek by virtual private network provider ExpressVPN on Tuesday showed an increase in the product's use following the implementation of age verification laws for seven of the eight states in which they have been applied, including Texas.
In the week after these laws took effect, compared to the week before, ExpressVPN use in Utah, Virginia and Mississippi increased by 57 percent, 39 percent and 35 percent respectively. In North Carolina, the increase was 26 percent; 20 percent in Montana and 12 percent in Louisiana.
Only in Arkansas did the use of ExpressVPN fall, by 1.6 percent, in the week after age verification laws went into operation. For Texas, the figure is currently a 35 percent increase though the data won't be directly comparable until a week after the implementation of the new law.
Lauren Hendry Parsons, privacy advocate for virtual private network provider ExpressVPN, told Newsweek the new Texas law is putting the data of those accessing pornographic websites at risk.
She said: "Age verification systems collect a huge amount of data, not only the personal information from each ID but also a record of each and every authentication made—essentially any site you access that features adult content.
"Combined with the data profiling social media companies create about their users, this treasure trove of personal information is a perfect target for bad actors. Take the Ashley Madison data breach in 2015 as an example of what can happen if personal data is badly handled, misused, accessed, or leaked."
In 2015, hackers stole personal data from millions of people who had used Ashley Madison, a website for married individuals who are seeking an affair, and published it on the dark web.
Update 3/22/24, 3:25 a.m. ET: This story has been updated with comment from vpnMentor explaining their methodology and to note that Pornhub declined to comment further.
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