Porn site fined £800,000 for not rolling out age checks

Ofcom has fined porn company Kick Online Entertainment SA £800,000 for failing to introduce proper age verification measures.

The media regulator said the company did not have "highly effective" methods to check UK visitors were over 18.

Ofcom said Kick Online Entertainment has since brought in age checks - but was not complying with the law between July and December 2025.

It said on Thursday it had also found message board 4chan and two other companies had failed to comply with Online Safety Act duties.

Suzanne Cater, director of enforcement at Ofcom, said it was "non-negotiable" for adult sites to have highly effective age checks in place to prevent children accessing porn.

"Any company that fails to meet this duty - or engage with us - can expect to face robust enforcement action, including significant fines," she added.

Under the Online Safety Act, the regulator can fine firms up to 10% of their turnover or apply for a court order to block a site in the UK.

The regulator said Kick Online Entertainment failed to introduce age checks for the porn sites it runs as required between 25 July and 29 December, resulting in its penalty.

It has also fined the company £30,000 for not responding to its information requests and will impose a £200 daily penalty until it responds.

It prioritised Kick Online Entertainment because of the number of users it had.

The regulator has launched probes into many more porn sites lacking age checks and handed down decisions, including fines, for some.

Cater said on Thursday Ofcom would continue its investigations into other sites under the UK's age check requirements and "take further action where necessary".

Meanwhile, the watchdog has given 4chan 10 working days to respond to its provisional notice that the site has broken its rules, including over age checks and a risk assessment of illegal content on the site.

The company behind 4chan was fined £20,000 by Ofcom last year as part of a narrower investigation into its compliance with online regulation.

"Ofcom is treading on American citizens and companies," a lawyer who represents 4chan said.

"Its orders are invalid in our country and directly conflict with my client's constitutional rights," Preston Byrne, managing partner of law firm Byrne & Storm, told BBC News.

Some American politicians - particularly those within the Trump administration - have pushed back against what they regard as overreach in the regulation of US tech firms by the UK and EU.

"America will not tolerate Ofcom's behaviour for much longer... Every time they send one of their unenforceable enforcement notices into our country, it adds fuel and urgency to law reform efforts here in the United States," Byrne added.