Senator Reveals Plan to Crack Down on Internet Porn

GREAT FALLS, Mont. — As a way to crack down on online sexual predators, Senator Max Baucus wants to tax Internet pornographers, require porn websites use age-verification software and create a cyber crime task force in Great Falls, Montana.

Baucus, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, unveiled his plan to attack cyber crime against children Friday and said he intends to introduce some of the plan, "Cyber Safety for Kids," to Congress in the coming weeks.

His plan outlines ways to regulate adult sites by making users verify that they are over age 18 before entering, requiring that banks and other merchants process only those transactions that are age-verified and imposing a mandatory 25 percent tax on access of adult websites. The plan also calls for establishing the .xxx domain specifically for adult sites, as grouping adult sites should keep kids from mistakenly entering them, Baucus said.

A portion of the tax revenue would pay for a 24-hour cyber tip line and a chunk would go for cyber crime enforcement, Baucus said.

The senator also is looking for federal money to establish a state cyber crime task force in both Great Falls and Missoula. Start-up costs are estimated at $250,000 each, Baucus said.

Unlike Montana's current cyber crime task force in Billings, which consists of only FBI agents, the task force in Great Falls and Missoula would involve local and state law enforcement officers, as well as federal agents.

"You get all these people in the same room ... it can be highly effective," Baucus Spokesman Barrett Kaiser said.

With cyber crime on the rise, finding ways to deal with the problem are not always easy, Scott Cruse, FBI supervisory agent, said.

"This is a crime problem where we will never see the bottom," Cruse said. "It is very assiduous and hard to detect."

Often, collecting child pornography or scouring the Internet for child victims eventually leads to sexual assault, Great Falls attorney John Parker said. He added that targeting cyber crime can prevent more serious offenses from occurring, but that law enforcement relies heavily on parents monitoring their children's computer behavior.

Cruse said most victims are between ages 13 and 17. Baucus added that he hopes his initiatives will make it difficult for sexual predators to take advantage of children, especially children who browse the Internet and enter adult websites accidentally.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Taylor Nicole Launches New Site Through YourPaysitePartner

Creator Taylor Nicole has launched her new official website through YourPaysitePartner (YPP).

Adult Networking Platform SpicyGigs.com Launches

SpicyGigs, a new adult industry networking platform, has officially launched.

Pineapple Support to Host 'Cream Pie Challenge' Fundraiser

Pineapple Support is hosting its Cream Pie Challenge through August to raise funds for mental health services for industry performers.

Kyrgyzstan President Signs Measure Outlawing Internet Porn

President Sadyr Japarov of Kyrgyzstan on Tuesday signed into law legislation outlawing online adult content in the country.

NC Legislature Overrides Veto of Extreme Anti-Adult Industry Bill

The North Carolina state legislature on Tuesday voted to override Gov. Josh Stein’s veto of a bill imposing regulations that industry observers have warned could push adult websites and platforms to ban most creators and content.

Report: VPN Downloads Soar in UK Following Age Verification Deadline

Virtual private network apps, which can be used to circumvent geo-specific age verification requirements, are topping Apple App Store downloads in the U.K. in the wake of new Online Safety Act rules, the BBC is reporting.

Strike 3 Holdings Sues Meta for Pirating Vixen Media Group Content to Train AI

Vixen Media Group owner Strike 3 Holdings filed suit in federal court this week, accusing Facebook parent company Meta of copyright infringement and alleging that Meta has extensively pirated VMG content to train its artificial intelligence models.

Pineapple Support, Streamate to Host 'Navigating Grief and Loss' Support Group

Pineapple Support and Streamate are hosting a free online support group to help performers cope with grief and loss.

Friday is Final AV Compliance Deadline in UK

Friday, July 25 marks U.K. media regulator Ofcom’s deadline for user-to-user services such as tube, cam and fan sites to implement its requisite “highly effective age assurance” measures for preventing minors from viewing adult content.

AEBN Publishes Popular Searches for May, June

AEBN has released the top search terms for the months of May and June from its straight and gay theaters in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Show More