New law in affect, requiring adult websites to require age verification in South Dakota

Adults seeking to access pornographic web sites will need to be prepared to enter identification.

The South Dakota legislature last session passed HB 1053 into law, requiring adult website or websites that host obscene materials must require age verification. The bill went into law July 1^st.

Visitors will be expected to enter a photo id, bank account information or credit card information that requires the owner to be at least 18 years or older.

Proponents of the bill argued it is in place to protect children from accessing these websites, while opponents said handing over personal data to accesses these websites raises concerns about surveillance censorship and government overreach.

According to the bill, if a web site does not comply with the law the AG may contact them to change the policy or risk a class 1 misdemeanor on the first offense.