Dozens of women have filed a lawsuit against Pornhub and its parent companyfor allegedly showing videos of rape, child sexual exploitation, trafficking and other sexual content without consent. The women allege that the site exploited videos that depicted rape, child, trafficking and other sexual content without the consent of the individuals.
See also: Pornhub: Legal loopholes in its policies around exploitative videos!
The complaint alleges that Pornhub's parent company, MindGeek, one of the largest online pornography companies, is a "classic criminal enterprise" with a business structure set up to monetize sexual content, which is often non-consensual. Pornhub denies the allegations.
The lawsuit was filed by Brown Rudnick LLP on behalf of 34 victims of sexual exploitation, including minors, victims of rape and human trafficking.
MindGeek owns over 100 pornographic sites, production companies and brands, including Pornhub, RedTube, Tube8 and YouPorn. From all of these, the company garners at least 3.5 billion views per month.
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Michael Bowe, the lawyer representing the alleged victims, said the online pornography industry operates in a way that does not apply the rules that should apply.
"This is rape, not pornography," the lawsuit states.
The women are accusing Pornhub of profiting from videos posted without their consent. Only one of the plaintiffs has filed a complaint by name. The other 33 wanted to remain anonymous.
One of the women said that her video, which was posted on Pornhub, ruined her life.
“It is time for companies and individuals who have profited from non-consensual and illegal content to be held accountable for their crime,” the plaintiff said. “I am joining the lawsuit against Pornhub because I seek justice for myself and the countless victims.”
In a statement to CNN Business, Pornhub said it was reviewing and investigating the allegations. The company behind Pornhub said it takes such allegations seriously but denies allegations of a criminal structure within the business.
There have been other complaints against Pornhub and MindGeek in the past .
See also: Pornhub: $600 million lawsuit for child pornography!
In December, the New York Times accused the pornographic site of hosting videos depicting child abuse and non-consensual sexual acts. Pornhub denied the allegations, calling them “irresponsible and blatantly untrue.”
Following this action, Pornhub implemented new security policies on its platform. The new policies ensured that only verified users could post content on the site. Additionally, it would not be possible to download videos of sexual content. In February, the site introduced further measures for verification, monitoring, and detection.
Source: CNN International
