A $120 million settlement between the companies behind Pornhub and people whose sexual abuse as children was recorded and posted on the companies’ websites is now before a federal judge in Los Angeles, who heard the request for preliminary approval on Nov. 6. As of Nov. 9, no written ruling had been entered on the court’s docket.
U.S. District Judge Wesley L. Hsu of the Central District of California is overseeing the settlement in Jane Doe v. MindGeek USA Inc., a class action filed in February 2021 against MindGeek, the Pornhub owner since renamed Aylo. The deal also resolves a companion class action in Alabama federal court, Jane Doe v. MG Freesites Ltd., which was about to go to trial when settlement talks resumed in 2025.
The companies do not oppose the request. Preliminary approval is not the final word. It would mean the judge found the deal fair enough to notify survivors, who could then file claims or object before the court decides whether to give final approval.
Who the settlement covers
The settlement class includes everyone who was under 18 when they appeared in a video or image made available for viewing on any website owned or operated by the defendants from Feb. 12, 2011, through Dec. 6, 2024. Those sites include Pornhub, YouPorn and RedTube. According to the plaintiffs’ settlement motion, the videos and images were viewed more than 684 million times on Pornhub.com and the companies’ other websites.
The two women who brought the cases allege the companies profited from videos of their abuse. The California plaintiff alleges her boyfriend recorded sex with her when she was a minor and uploaded the videos to Pornhub. The Alabama plaintiff alleges she was drugged and raped as a minor and that her abuser posted the videos to the site. Both allege the companies reviewed the videos before making them available. The lawsuits brought claims under federal child pornography and sex trafficking laws, and the California case added claims under California law. The companies deny all of the allegations.
Both courts rejected the companies’ arguments that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which generally shields websites from liability for content their users post, barred the claims. Judge Hsu certified the California class on Nov. 17, 2023, and U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler certified the Alabama class on Dec. 19, 2023. Federal appeals courts declined to review either ruling.
How the $120 million would be paid
No money goes back to the companies. Under the settlement agreement, the defendants paid $25 million on July 31, 2026, and will pay six more installments of about $15.8 million each June, the last in 2032. Survivors who file approved claims share the fund equally after fees, service awards and administration costs, which the administrator estimates at 4 to 5 percent of the fund. Payments go out within 30 days after each installment, so survivors would be paid in stages.
Class counsel said they will ask for attorney fees of no more than one third of the fund, plus service awards of up to $150,000 for each of the two women who brought the cases. The judge decides those amounts before final approval. If money is left unclaimed, class counsel may ask the court to give it to an organization working to prevent child sexual abuse material.
Changes Pornhub must make
The settlement also requires changes to how the sites operate. The companies must use government ID to verify that everyone who uploads or appears in content was at least 18 when it was made. They must also use software and human moderators to find and remove abuse material, train their trust and safety staff, expand procedures for removal requests and flagging, ban users who upload abuse material, and report twice a year on their policies. A monitoring committee will meet at least once a year for five years, and the companies agreed to five years of outside audits.
The settlement does not release claims against other platforms, content partners or advertisers, or claims based on conduct after Dec. 6, 2024.
What happens next for survivors
The parties asked the court to appoint Gentle Turner & Benson, a national claims administrator experienced with sexual abuse settlements, to run the settlement. Survivors must file a claim form to be paid. The form was designed with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to collect enough detail to confirm eligibility without being invasive, and everything submitted is kept strictly confidential.
Notice will go out by email and mail to survivors identified in the companies’ records and to people who reported abuse material to the companies, through banners on the companies’ websites, through the center’s network of service providers and victim advocates, through the media and on a settlement website. Under the schedule the parties proposed, the website would go live and notice would begin within 14 days of an approval order, objections would be due 45 days after notice, claims would be due 120 days after notice, and the final approval hearing would come at least 96 days after the order. The exact dates will be set once the judge rules.
There is no new chance to opt out. Survivors already had that chance after the classes were certified, and the opt-out periods closed in April 2024 in California and December 2024 in Alabama.
The case is one of a growing number seeking to hold online platforms responsible for harm to children. Families are pursuing similar claims against social media companies, including suits alleging that Meta and Snap designed their apps in ways that hurt young users. LegalScoops tracks those cases on its social media addiction lawsuit update page.
Common Questions
Who is included in the Pornhub settlement?
The class covers everyone who was under 18 when they appeared in a video or image made available on a website owned or operated by MindGeek, now Aylo, including Pornhub, YouPorn and RedTube, from Feb. 12, 2011, through Dec. 6, 2024. People who opted out of the class in 2024 are not included.
How much will each survivor receive?
No per-person amount has been set. The $120 million fund, minus court-approved fees, service awards and costs, is divided equally among survivors with approved claims, so each share depends on how many people file. Payments are made in stages as the companies pay installments through 2032.
Is the settlement final?
No. The judge first decides whether to grant preliminary approval, which lets notice go out to survivors. Final approval would come at a later hearing, after survivors have had a chance to file claims or object.
Is my information kept private if I file a claim?
Yes. According to the settlement papers, everything a survivor submits with a claim form or shares with the administrator is kept strictly confidential. The claim form was designed with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to ask only what is needed to confirm eligibility.
What changes does the settlement require?
The companies must use government ID to verify that everyone who uploads or appears in content was at least 18 when it was made, use software and human moderators, improve removal and flagging procedures, report twice a year on their policies, and accept a monitoring committee and outside audits for five years.
