Porn Identification verification to start April 2018

PHOTO CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES

Introduction of compulsory age checks on online pornography seen from the UK to begin in nine months. 

 The April 2018 goal to protect under-18s was revealed as digital minister Matt Hancock signed the commencement order for the Digital Economy Act, which introduces the requirement.
Details as to how the scheme will work have yet to be finalized.
Experts who advised ministers said the targeted date seemed "unrealistic".
The act also sets out other new laws including punishing the use of bots to snatch up scores of concert tickets, and mandating the provision of subtitles on catch-up TV.
Credit cards 
 The requirement for age-check applies to any online platform or website that provides pornography "on a commercial basis" to people in the UK.
It allows a regulator to fine any business that refuses to comply and to ask third-party payment services to withdraw support.
watchdog will also be able to force internet providers to block access to non-compliant services.
Ministers have suggested one of several ways this might work would be for pornographic sites to demand credit card details before providing any access, since in the UK consumers typically have to be over 18 to have a card of their own.
While it has been proposed that the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) will assume this role, a spokesman for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport said the appointment would not be formalized until the autumn.
"We are already working closely with DCMS to ensure the effective implementation of the act," a spokeswoman for the BBFC told the BBC, but added that it was too early to say more about what guidance it might issue.
The measure has been welcomed by child protection charities including Childnet.
"Protecting children from exposure, including accidental exposure, to adult content is incredibly important, given the effect it can have on young people," said its chief executive Will Gardner.
"Steps like this help restrict access."
"It may make it harder for children to stumble across pornography, especially in the younger age range, but it will do nothing to stop determined teenagers," Dr Nash concluded.

• Porn site age verification from 2018
• Porn sites could be blocked by ISPs
• Age checks for porn sites in Queen's Speech

Bot Bashing
Other topics covered by the act to be implemented include:

• requiring video-on-demand programmes to contain subtitles as an option
• making it a criminal offence to use automated computer programs, known as bots, to bulk-buy event tickets before selling them on at inflated prices
• simplifying planning rules to make it easier to install mobile and broadband infrastructure
• raising the maximum penalty for instances of online piracy from two to 10 years.

Some provisions set out by the act have already come into force, including the introduction of a "broadband universal service obligation" to give households the right to request download speeds of at least 10 megabits per second, and increased fines for firms behind nuisance calls.
According to Mr Hancock,"The Digital Economy Act is about building a strong, safe and connected economy" .
Source