Utah First State to Target VPNs in Age Verification

Utah became the first U.S. state to target virtual private networks in age verification requirements for websites containing material harmful to minors when Senate Bill 73 took effect on May 6. The law, signed by Governor Spencer Cox on March 19 and sponsored by Senator Calvin Musselman, amends the state's existing age verification statute by holding websites liable for verifying the ages of users physically located in Utah, even if they use VPNs, proxy servers or other tools to mask their location.

Under the prior law, enacted in 2023 as SB 287, websites must confirm users' ages through methods such as digital ID cards, third-party services or credit cards before granting access to such content. Major platforms like Pornhub responded by blocking access for Utah users. SB 73 addresses workarounds by prohibiting sites from facilitating or encouraging VPN use, including providing instructions on circumvention or means to bypass geofencing. It also imposes a 2 percent tax on revenues from adult content websites, effective October 1, along with fines for noncompliance.

The legislation defines a Utah-based user as anyone physically in the state, regardless of apparent IP location....