The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case challenging a Texas law requiring pornographic websites to verify users’ ages to prevent minors from accessing explicit material. The 2023 law mandates websites with over one-third “harmful sexual material” to require users to submit personal information proving they are 18 or older.
Challengers, including the Free Speech Coalition and companies like Pornhub, argue the law violates adults’ First Amendment rights and increases risks of identity theft and data breaches. They suggest content-filtering software and on-device age verification as less intrusive alternatives.
The law is part of a broader push by Republican-led states to limit minors’ access to online pornography. While Texas defends its measure as essential to protecting children from harmful content, opponents cite a 2004 Supreme Court precedent safeguarding adults’ access to non-obscene sexual material.
Initially blocked by U.S. District Judge David Alan Ezra, the law was later reinstated by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled the challengers were unlikely to succeed. However, the court upheld an injunction against a provision requiring websites to display health warnings about pornography.
President Biden’s administration has urged the Supreme Court to revisit the case under stricter judicial scrutiny. Texas claims current protections are insufficient, citing the ease of minors accessing violent and graphic content via smartphones.
The outcome could redefine the balance between state powers to protect minors and the constitutional rights of adults in accessing online content.
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