Contents
- Crime Scene…Business…Po-ta-to…Po-tat-o
- #TraffickingHub
- Investors Got Rich
- Someone Paid the Price, Right?
- Ending Online Trafficking at the Source
- Resources
Porn is a touchy subject. It’s ubiquitous, making up something like 30-50% of all internet traffic.
PornHub was once a cultural giant, marketed as a mainstream brand and the internet’s “YouTube of porn.”
But beneath the glossy image was a horrific reality—an unchecked crime scene where child abuse, rape, and sex trafficking videos were uploaded, monetized, and nearly impossible for victims to remove.
Laila Mickelwait, a relentless anti-trafficking advocate, uncovered the shocking truth: PornHub allowed anyone to upload content with no age or consent verification, leading to countless cases of exploitation.
Through a viral movement, media pressure, and financial targeting, Mickelwait and her allies forced one of the largest content takedowns in internet history.
But while the site has been severely crippled, true justice remains elusive, as the executives behind this global crime network have yet to face real consequences.
Crime Scene…Business…Po-ta-to…Po-tat-o
PornHub was once the fifth most-visited website in the world.
Take that however you want. This story isn’t about consensual, legal porn. It doesn’t take much imagination to see how such dirty business can take the next step to illegality though.
“PornHub was not a porn site. It was a crime scene.”
With just a little effort, Liala discovered the site had no age or consent verification required for uploads.
Victims as young as three were found in videos on the platform.
It’s an excruciatingly dark concept, but one that we must confront as a moral civilization.
#TraffickingHub
Liala launched the #TraffickingHub movement, aiming to expose the company’s crimes. She was able to gather over 2.3 million signatures in a viral petition.
Survivors came forward, revealing horrendous stories of abuse, blackmail, and years-long struggles to remove content.
“Whistleblowers from the company exposed the inner workings of how they recklessly disregarded human life for profit.”
Internal whistleblowers exposed the non-existence of safeguards, the company’s knowledge of criminal activity, and the lack of applied resources to prevent further illegal activity.
Investors Got Rich
Investigative journalism, particularly Nick Kristof’s New York Times expose, put pressure on the company.
Credit card companies severed ties, cutting off PornHub’s financial lifeline.
The parent company, MindGeek, was sold as a distressed asset.
“Their investors included hedge funds like Colbeck Capital and even institutions like JP Morgan Chase and Cornell University.”
But all the while, investors including hedge funds, major banks (JP Morgan), and even institutions like Cornell University were profiting from sex trafficking.
And now many of these investors are facing lawsuits from nearly 300 victims.
Someone Paid the Price, Right?
Yet, despite overwhelming evidence, criminal accountability is still lacking.
Civil lawsuits have revealed damning emails proving executives knew about and monetized this abuse.
But the U.S. government imposed only a small fine and a temporary monitor.
Let’s be real – this is no parading on capital grounds charge we’re talking about – the feds have bigger fish to fry.
Ending Online Trafficking at the Source
Laila suggests international solutions may be needed, as these corporations operate across borders. MindGeek is a Canadian enterprise.
She suggests financial institutions must refuse doing business with any porn platform that lacks consent and age verification.
“This fight is not just about one website—it’s about stopping a system that allows human lives to be exploited for profit.”
The fight against PornHub is far from over.
While financial pressure and lawsuits have exposed the industry’s dark underbelly, corporate traffickers and their enablers remain largely unpunished.
The only way to prevent this cycle from continuing is to push for stricter laws, hold financial institutions accountable, and demand criminal charges against those who profit from abuse.
Mickelwait’s work proves that real change is possible—but it takes persistent pressure and public outrage to dismantle systems built on human exploitation.
The question remains: is the right to create and watch porn so absolute that we are willing to let these businesses to operate without scrutiny?
Crimes in any other industry wouldn’t be so swiftly ignored. It’s just such a dirty business that no one wants to have to talk about it at all. The victims deserve better.