Pornhub Falling: Visa and Mastercard Cut Ties with MindGeek’s Cash Cow
With Visa and Mastercard’s closely-spaced announcements about cutting ties with Pornhub (Visa’s technically only committed to suspending payment processing for Pornhub pending an outcome in Visa’s own investigation) on December 10, 2020, the façade of impunity surrounding MindGeek’s internationally known and inherently exploitative cash cow has begun crumbling in earnest. Visa and Mastercard have made…
PROGRESS! Instagram Takes Step Forward via Improved Reporting and Direct Message Tools
Instagram has made significant improvements to address the sexual exploitation and abuse that occur on its platform. The National Center on Sexual Exploitation has been communicating and working with Instagram for over a year. We are grateful to report regular positive developments from this collaboration following meetings with an international campaign led by Australian Collective…
Help Us Pass the EARN IT Act in the U.S. Senate
The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved the EARN IT Act Thursday, July 2, in a full committee markup of the bill. Introduced by a bipartisan group of Senators in March 2020, the Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies Act (EARN IT Act, S. 3398) is designed to increase Big Tech accountability for two…
Dignity Defense Alert: PayPal severs ties with Pornhub
The National Center on Sexual Exploitation is honored to recognize PayPal in July 2020’s Dignity Defense Alert for severing ties with Pornhub in an industry-leading move that proved PayPal truly does put “people at the center of everything [they] do.” By ceasing to process payments to Pornhub, PayPal hampered a predatory corporation’s ability to perpetuate…
The EARN IT Act Passed the Senate Judiciary Committee. Here Are the Next Steps.
The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) is deeply grateful to the Senate Judiciary Committee which unanimously approved a stronger version of the EARN IT Act Thursday, July 2, in a full committee markup of the bill. Introduced by a bipartisan group of Senators in March 2020, the Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive…
#PornWarning: Utah Blazes Trail with Simple, Effective Label Law
Darby Bailey was tucking her five-year-old nephew into bed in May 2020 when she noticed an iPad he had been using was still on. As she was closing apps on the device, she was shocked to find that, although her nephew could barely read, he had somehow managed to open Safari and land on Pornhub!…
What NCOSE Is Doing About Internet Safety Month 2020
*This blog is the first in a series for Internet Safety Month. The first part covers current actions NCOSE supports in order to fight for internet safety. The second installment covers progress that still needs to be made on this front.* As designated by the U.S Senate, June is National Internet Safety Month in the…
Online Sexual Exploitation Creeping Back into U.S. Due to Lack of FOSTA-SESTA Enforcement
The passage of FOSTA-SESTA in 2018 was a major legislative victory for survivors of sex trafficking. It gave survivors a route to justice by providing a civil right of action. It also empowered state Attorney Generals to prosecute websites that facilitate sex trafficking. Furthermore, its impact on the online commercial sexual exploitation landscape was immediate…
International Coalition Calls on Major Card Companies to Cease Work with Porn Industry
As detailed in coverage from the BBC, an international coalition of child safety and anti-sexual exploitation organizations and advocates—spearheaded by our newly-launched International Centre on Sexual Exploitation (ICOSE)—has launched a trailblazing grassroots advocacy campaign against the exploitative hardcore pornography industry by sending a joint letter to major credit card and payment processing companies. The letter…
How to Secure Zoom Calls and Protect from Exploitative “Zoombombing”
As more groups and individuals turn to Zoom for video conferencing during the COVID-19 pandemic, a problematic trend called “Zoombombing” is on the rise. Unfortunately for the many thousands (likely millions) of people who are using Zoom video conferencing for the first time for work, school, and socializing, Zoom isn’t as secure as it should…