Residents of Virginia and Mississippi no longer will be able to access Pornhub after the states passed laws requiring age verification to access pornographic websites.

The states, whose rules went into effect July 1, join Utah and Louisiana in enacting laws that require users to show proof that they are older than 18.

Under the new laws, which are meant to limit children’s access to explicit content, users have to submit personal information such as a government ID before accessing the site.

The company says the laws are a significant roadblock for users and, citing privacy and safety concerns, decided to block access to its site in most of the states that have enacted age verification laws.

In January, Louisiana enacted an age verification law that asked residents to submit proof of their age before continuing. If pornography websites don’t comply, they could be fined up to $5,000 a day, according to a subsequent bill passed in June.

Pornhub complied with Louisiana law and set up a digital wallet for users to verify their age. However, in response to Utah enacting similar legislation in May, the company opted to block access in the state.

If residents try to use Pornhub in Utah, Virginia or Mississippi, they are greeted with a message explaining why they cannot access the site.

“While safety and compliance are at the forefront of our mission, giving your ID card every time you want to visit an adult platform is not the most effective solution for protecting our users, and in fact, will put children and your privacy at risk,” adult film actor Cherie DeVille says in the video.

Pornhub says extensive parental controls already exist that should prevent children from accessing explicit content without risking the breach of private data.

However, more states are seeking to enact age verification laws this year, with Texas and Montana expected to pass similar laws.

Despite the restrictive nature of the laws, users can circumvent the bans by using a VPN.

The age verification laws are part of a greater crackdown on explicit content online in an effort to protect children. States such as Arkansas, Ohio and Utah have passed laws requiring age verification checks on social media sites like Instagram. Other lawmakers have proposed going further. Sen. Josh Hawley, Missouri Republican, has floated banning anyone under the age of 16 from social media.

• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.