Judge grants preliminary approval to $120 million Pornhub settlement
Judge tentatively approves $120 million class-action settlement over allegations of profiting from nonconsensual and underage content.
A person views Pornhub on a laptop computer (Franco Alva/Unsplash via Courthouse News)
A federal judge has issued a tentative ruling granting preliminary approval to a $120 million class-action settlement involving the parent company of Pornhub. U.S. District Judge Wesley Hsu presided over the hearing in Los Angeles, where the agreement was reviewed following its initial filing on Aug. 14, 2026.
The settlement resolves two class-action lawsuits originally filed in 2021 in California and Alabama. The plaintiffs, a group of thousands of women, alleged that Aylo, formerly known as MindGeek, violated the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act by profiting from nonconsensual explicit content and material created while the victims were underage.
Under the terms of the agreement, the class includes individuals who were under 18 when they were depicted in explicit content made available on the company's websites between Feb. 12, 2011, and Dec. 6, 2024. The company is required to implement new verification measures to ensure that both the individuals shown in uploaded videos and the users uploading the content are at least 18 years old.
The financial structure of the settlement requires Aylo to pay an initial $25 million in 2026, with the remainder of the $120 million to be paid out in six annual installments. The agreement remains subject to final approval by the court.