Playboy slapped with 100,000-pound fine over pornographic websites

Two websites owned by Playboy- Playboy TV and Demand Adult - which allows access to "hardcore videos and images" without having acceptable controls in place to check whether users were aged 18 or over, have been fined a total of 100,000 pounds by a communications regulator.

The websites, which are regulated by Ofcom and the Authority for Video on Demand (ATVOD), have been fined 65,000 pounds in relation to Demand Adult and 35,000 pounds for Playboy TV, reports The Telegraph.

Ofcom said Playboy's failure to protect children from potentially accessing the sites was "serious, repeated and reckless".

The homepage of Demand Adult displayed hardcore pornographic material that could be viewed by clicking on a button labelled "Enter I am over 18", and users could access more paid-for content with a debit card.

Neither of the controls constituted an effective age verification system, Ofcom said

Playboy TV also asked users to self-certify their age before entering the main site but, unlike Demand Adult, the material on the home page showed sexual activity without explicit detail.

Users could also access this website's hardcore pornographic material by registering using a debit card. Again, neither system was effective at verifying age, the regulator concluded.

Ofcom said effective age controls included asking for the details of a credit card, which are not available to under-18s.