CYBERSPACE—Over the past year xHamster has been working to find an age-verification solution for its users in the United Kingdom that would will be free and protect private data.
According to a company statement, “We’re the third most visited adult site in the U.K., and with great power comes great responsibility. We know how sensitive data around sexuality and adult content consumption is, so we did not rush into it.
“We are pleased to announce that we will use 1Account, an innovative AV-tool that we believe is the most convenient and least intrusive of all options. What’s more, since 1Account was built non-adult uses in mind, such as mobile payment verification, there is no stigma associated with using it.”
According to xHamster, the 1Account AV system does not store any personal user information and does not track any data after age-verification.
It’s also free, and allows the user to choose a verification method from any of the following methods:
- Mobile phone number (EE, O2, Vodafone and Three)
- UK Credit card
- UK Debit card
- UK Driving Licence
- UK Citizen Card*
Once verified, users can choose to remain signed in so that they can access any of the age-restricted sites integrated with 1Account without the need to log in separately.
Users will be able to verify their age using 1Account on a range of sites —1Account is now open for consumer registrations.
“We are anxious to educate our users about the new regulations,” says Alex Hawkins. “Earlier this year, a study of our visitors showed that nearly half were unaware of the law. Many planned not to comply. We hope that our partnership with 1Account, with its extensive privacy protections and no-touch data helps people become more comfortable with the law.”
xHamster is embarking on an awareness campaign for users ahead of the July 15 deadline. The xHamster 2019 Age-Verification Compliance Study can be found here.
* 1Account expects to add Citizen Card as an age-verification method before the July 15 deadline.
