NEW YORK, NY — The owner of Pornhub, a prominent adult content website, confessed to benefiting from sex trafficking and has consented to compensation for women whose videos were posted without their consent, as revealed by federal prosecutors in New York on Thursday.
Aylo Holdings, the parent company of the website, reached a deferred prosecution agreement to resolve accusations of engaging in illicit financial transactions linked to sex trafficking profits, announced Breon Peace, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. As part of the agreement, the Montreal-based company is obligated to pay over $1.8 million to the U.S. government and make separate payments to individual women affected by the trafficking. Additionally, it requires the appointment of an independent monitor for three years, following which the charges will be dismissed.
"We hope this resolution, involving agreed payments to the impacted women and an independent monitorship, offers some sense of closure to those affected negatively," stated Peace.
James Smith, head of the FBI’s New York office, accused Aylo Holdings of "knowingly enriching itself by ignoring" victims' complaints regarding being deceived and coerced into videos.
Prosecutors outlined that Aylo has committed to compensating victims, but specific eligibility criteria and application processes will be forthcoming.
The charge stemmed from Aylo's association with hosting videos and receiving payments from GirlsDoPorn. The latter faced charges and convictions for various sex trafficking crimes, coercing women into sexual acts that were then posted on Pornhub and other adult sites without consent.
Between 2017 and 2020, prosecutors allege Aylo received funds known or reasonably should have known were derived from GirlsDoPorn’s sex trafficking operations. Despite direct appeals from affected women, the company allegedly failed to promptly remove all non-consensual videos.
Aylo operates adult websites, generating revenue through licensing agreements, advertisements, and subscriptions. Prosecutors noted payments of over $100,000 from GirlsDoPorn and approximately $764,000 from advertisers traceable to the production company.
Formerly known as MindGeek, Aylo Holdings expressed regret for hosting GirlsDoPorn content without full awareness of the fraudulent consent forms used.
Aylo maintained its stance that neither the company nor its affiliates violated federal criminal laws pertaining to sex trafficking or exploitation of minors.
The agreement, filed in federal court in Brooklyn, follows the European Union's recent directive requiring Pornhub and other major porn sites to verify user ages under the Digital Services Act, aimed at enhancing internet safety.
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