Government accused of ‘caving to the porn industry’ after release of eSafety Roadmap for age verification

A new announcement over the way Australians access porn has seen the government accused of “caving to the vested interests of the porn industry”.

The Federal Government has been accused of prioritising the profits of the porn industry over the safety of children by refusing to adopt an age-verification system aimed at shielding minors from explicit content.

The Federal Government has been accused of prioritising the profits of the porn industry over the safety of children by refusing to adopt an age-verification system aimed at shielding minors from explicit content.

The decision has drawn strong condemnation from Collective Shout, a leading organisation focused on challenging the objectification of women and sexualisation of children.

The Federal Government released the eSafety Commissioner’s Roadmap for age verification on Thursday, along with its own response to the issue.

“It is clear from the road map at present, each type of age verification or age assurance technology comes with its own privacy, security, effectiveness or implementation issues,” the government’s response to the road map said.

The government stated that the technology must be able to be applied to pornography hosted outside Australia, and not place risk on the personal information for adults who choose to access legal pornography.

“The road map makes clear that a decision to mandate age assurance is not yet ready to be taken.”

The development comes as a significant blow to groups committed of protecting children who have spent years campaigning to implement a standardised age-verification system.

Critics argue that the Government’s decision represents a surrender to the vested interests of the pornography industry, rather than prioritising the welfare of vulnerable children.

The Government’s response has been labelled as a delay tactic, hindering meaningful progress in protecting children from exposure to explicit content.

The Federal Government has been accused of prioritising the profits of the porn industry over the safety of children by refusing to adopt an age-verification system aimed at shielding minors from explicit content.

“It’s time to stop calling this process a ‘Roadmap’. There is no ‘Roadmap’. There are only delays and obstacles to doing anything that would bring the predatory porn industry into line,” Collective Shout’s Movement Director Melinda Tankard Reist said in a statement provided to news.com.au.

“Even while acknowledging porn as a driver of violence against women, as reflected in its National Plan to Address Violence Against Women and Children (2022-2023), the Government has allowed itself to be swayed by industry resistance to an age-verification system.

“The Government has caved to the vested interests of the porn industry. If France, Germany, UK, Louisiana and Utah can roll out age verification systems, why can’t we?

“Vested interests should not be put before the wellbeing of children.”

Child protection advocates argue that every day without government action results in more children being exposed to harmful content, leading to the distortion of their sexual development.

This is manifested in schools through an increase in sexual harassment, rape threats, and demands for explicit images.

“We are seeing the results in our schools every day, with a rise in sexual harassment, rape threats and demands for nudes. Primary school girls are routinely sent d**k pics,” the statement read.

Statistics show that adolescent boys aged 15-19 constitute the largest group of sexual offenders in the country.

Critics contend that by dismissing proof-of-age protections for children, the Government has failed in fulfilling its fundamental duty to protect the public.

The eSafety Commissioner has been contacted for comment.