{"id":106455,"date":"2024-05-16T14:23:01","date_gmt":"2024-05-16T12:23:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ondatolive.wpenginepowered.com\/?p=106455"},"modified":"2026-02-20T13:26:04","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T10:26:04","slug":"new-texas-age-verification-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ondato.com\/pl\/blog\/new-texas-age-verification-law\/","title":{"rendered":"The New Texas Age Verification Law Explained 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many adult sites still use primitive age verification methods, which rely on trust and having users input their birth dates with no way of verifying it. With the Supreme Court abstaining from blocking the new Texas law, the state aims to enhance these measures and protect minors from harmful content online. With other states drafting or having already signed similar age verification laws, businesses in the adult entertainment industry must decide how to proceed<\/strong>. In this article, we take a closer look at the law itself and how age verification can be implemented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What is the 1181 Bill?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Texas Age Verification Law (House Bill 1181<\/a>) officially became a law and was enacted on September 1, 2023. Even though the Texas law’s enforcement was challenged by the adult entertainment industry on grounds that it violates the First Amendment and conflicts with federal laws, like Section 230, the US Supreme Court rejected these appeals in 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This new Texas law<\/strong>, similar to the Child Online Protection Act, pertains to age verification<\/a> requirements, drafted with the goal of preventing minors access to sexual material, outlines several requirements for adult content websites<\/strong>. On top of this, it cites several health warnings, stating that pornography is addictive, impairs mental developments, and increases demand for child sexual abuse images amongst other things.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 1181 Bill states that any internet website, which contains content more than one third of which could be considered harmful to minors, must employ reasonable measures to verify the ages of its users. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bill defines reasonable measures as:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital identification performed by the website itself or a commercial age verification system that verifies age using:<\/p>

  1. Government-issued identification; or<\/li>
  2. A commercially reasonable method that relies on public or private transactional data to verify the age of an individual.<\/li><\/ol><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Reasonable Age Verification Measures<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    So far, the reaction to the new law has varied with some adult content websites choosing to halt operations in Texas and others, such as Fansly, implementing verification<\/a>. To understand the requirements, let’s take a close look at the two options of verification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ID-based Age Verification<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Identity Document (ID) based online age verification employs similar steps as identity verification<\/a>. It requires the user to provide their identity document as well as a picture of themselves for comparison of biometric data to ensure safe verification. With Ondato’s IDV system<\/a>, this method is simple, takes less than 60 seconds and offers 0 fraud tolerance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Age Estimation<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Age estimation<\/a> tools, on the other hand, minimise the need for identity documents, relying on biometric data to place the user in an age group. With Ondato age verification solution<\/a>, this method can onboard the majority of users without additional documents, only requiring IDs if there are any doubts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    Failure to Comply to Bill 1181<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The bill also states that neither the website nor any third party performing the verification can retain any identifying information<\/strong> on the individual once access has been granted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This Texas law carries fines for any commercial entity that fails to comply, making them liable to the parents or guardians of the minor for the damages resulting from a minor’s access to the material. This will include court and attorney costs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Any commercial entity or third party that has retained identifiable information past the access stage will be liable to the individual for damages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Age Verification Regulations Around the World<\/h2>\n\n\n\n