The Porn Pandemic: How Pornhub is Using COVID-19 to Capitalize on Human Trafficking
“Pornhub is making billions of dollars, profiting from the exploitation, sexual violence, and dehumanization of the most vulnerable people in the world, with impunity.”
– Taina Bien-Aime, Executive Director of the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women
With the outbreak of COVID-19 and subsequent stay-home orders instituted in major cities and countries around the globe, businesses small and large are facing financial crises. There is one industry, however, that is finding ways to capitalize on our new, intimacy deprived world: Porn.
Pornhub reports that traffic to their site has steadily increased since March—which saw a spike of 12% from February—as the pandemic has spread and lockdowns have taken effect. “Corona” has become a popular category on the site (alongside favorites like “abuse,” “rape,” and “young teen”), featuring face masks, surgical gloves, hazmat suits, and even depictions of infected patients. More than 1,000 such videos have been added to the site in response to over 17 million searches for coronavirus-themed content.
In what they advertised as an act of “love,” Pornhub offered their premium service for free to Italy, France, and Spain in March, later extending the promotion worldwide. Meanwhile, they are counting on the addictive nature of porn to retain new visitors.
Social distancing measures arrived just in time for Pornhub. In early March, hundreds gathered in protest outside the Pornhub/MindGeek headquarters in Montreal, which prompted a letter from Canadian Parliament Members and Senators urging the Prime Minister to take action against the company. With charitable posturing and the false promise to satiate people’s desire for comfort and intimacy in this time of self-isolation, Pornhub is working overtime to distract the public from the criminal, abusive material it hosts and promotes.
Just months ago, a 15-year-old girl who had been missing for a year was reunited with her family after it was discovered that her trafficker had uploaded 58 videos documenting her sexual abuse to Pornhub. On their Twitter account, the company admitted that the girl had been a verified member of the site—a title that requires no ID or proof of age.
It’s not just anonymous users uploading abusive content. In 2019, a federal indictment for sex trafficking was brought against the owners of GirlsDoPorn, a former “Content Partner” on Pornhub, after 22 women were deceived and coerced into performing sex acts. Though their official channel was eventually removed following the indictment, a simple search on Pornhub reveals that GirlsDoPorn videos are still readily accessible on the site.
Rose Kalemba shared her own disturbing story of exploitation with the BBC. At age 14 she was kidnapped, beaten, stabbed, and raped by two men. When she discovered through her classmates that several videos of her assault were uploaded to Pornhub, Rose was forced to relive her nightmare. One video received over 400,000 views. That is 400,000 instances of revictimization. With every stranger she passed on the street Rose wondered, “Had they gratified themselves to my rape?”
For six months Rose sent emails to Pornhub begging them to take the videos down but received no response. Eventually she posed as a lawyer and threatened the company with legal action. After appealing to their concern for money rather than morality, Pornhub finally responded. The videos were removed within 48 hours.
Victims like Rose should not have to beg to be heard. Will you join Catalyst in listening to the cries of women and girls trapped in exploitation? Pray, give, or volunteer today.
— Maggie
Proverbs 31: 8-9