Pornhub’s Parent Company Just Got Hit With a $5 Million Reality Check

So, Pornhub’s parent company Aylo (formerly known as MindGeek) is in hot water again – and this time, it comes with a $5 million price tag. The FTC and the state of Utah just slapped them with a settlement over allegations that they profited from child abuse and non-consensual content. Yep, it’s that bad.

Here’s the timeline: back in 2020, The New York Times dropped a bombshell exposé exposing how Pornhub let horrific content slip through the cracks. Only after Visa and Mastercard threatened to cut ties did Aylo suddenly discover the concept of ID checks and consent forms. Fast-forward, and regulators say even those “fixes” were a half-baked performance.

The FTC claims Aylo did two very shady things:

1. Hosted illegal content anyway. Their so-called “ban” policy for offenders was laughable—you could get banned, change your email, and you were right back on.
2. Mishandled performer data. Think Social Security numbers, addresses, birth dates… all stored without proper encryption or firewalls. Basically, a hacker’s buffet.

And about that “fingerprinting technology” Aylo bragged about? Supposed to prevent reuploads of flagged videos. The FTC says it flat-out didn’t work for years. Hundreds of banned videos kept slipping back in like an uninvited guest at a house party.

Now Aylo is spinning this settlement as proof they’re “committed to safety.” Translation: they’re on probation. For the next decade, they’ll have to verify every single performer, block illegal content before it goes live, clean up their existing mess, and submit to regular third-party audits.

In other words: Pornhub’s parent company just got grounded—and the FTC is checking their browser history for the next 10 years.