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"Playboy is being slammed for failing to keep children away from hardcore porn on two of its websites. \nOfcom, the UK's communications regulator and competition authority, fined the company \u00A3100,000 (about $160,200) for not having \"acceptable controls\" in place on Playboy TV and Demand Adult to ensure viewers are over 18 years old. Ofcom called Playboy's negligence \"serious, repeated and reckless.\"\n\"There are a number of controls that websites can use to verify the age of users,\" said a statement from Ofcom. \"This includes asking for credit card details before any adult content is made accessible. Credit cards, unlike debit cards, are not available to under 18s.  Playboy TV and Demand Adult had breached UK rules by having no effective systems in place to protect under 18s from unsuitable free and paid-for content.\"\nDemand Adult, one of the two sites, has a button saying \"Enter I am over 18,\" after which, hardcore porn is displayed. To view additional content, users can enter a debit card number. Neither the self verification nor the debit card are valid forms of age identification, Ofcom says, explaining its fine of \u00A365,000 for Demand Adult.\nSEE ALSO: Startup Thinks Real Sex Can Sell\n\nPlayboy TV also uses self verification to access its site, though no hardcore porn is displayed until debit card information is entered. Ofcom is fining Playboy TV \u00A335,000.\nDo you agree with Ofcom that the age verification systems in place are not effective enough? Let us know in the comments.\nUPDATE: Playboy sent Mashable the following statement Friday morning:\n\"The business subject to fine was part of the Manwin sale transaction completed in late 2011.  Accordingly, Playboy cannot speak to the application of the regulations to the websites at issue.\"\nPhoto courtesy of iStockphoto, ToolX"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2013/01/17/playboy-porn-children/>