Kristy Althaus is a former Miss Teen Colorado USA first runner-up who, at 18, was coerced into filming pornographic videos for the GirlsDoPorn operation in San Diego. After the footage appeared on Pornhub and other sites in early 2014, she was stripped of her pageant title, harassed at college and in public, and eventually changed her name. In September 2023 she filed a federal civil lawsuit against Pornhub’s parent company, alleging it knowingly profited from her trafficking.1404 Media. Girls Do Porn Pornhub Kristy Althaus
How She Was Recruited
Althaus was named first runner-up in the Miss Teen Colorado USA pageant in 2012, graduated high school in 2013, and started college that August. Shortly after graduating she answered a Craigslist ad offering a paid modeling job with travel covered to San Diego. According to her complaint, she was told the work would be headshots and clothing photography.1404 Media. Girls Do Porn Pornhub Kristy Althaus
When she arrived, GirlsDoPorn owner Michael Pratt told her she would be filming nude and sexually explicit videos. She refused. Pratt and his associates pressured her and, she alleges, gave her alcohol, marijuana, and Xanax, and spiked her drink with oxycodone.1404 Media. Girls Do Porn Pornhub Kristy Althaus
What She Alleges Happened During Filming
Her lawsuit describes a shoot that lasted roughly nine to ten hours, with Pratt, co-conspirator Matthew Wolfe, and another man barricading the hotel room doors. She alleges she endured non-consensual sex during which she began to bleed, and that when she pleaded for the filming to stop, Pratt broke a hotel lamp and brandished a gun.2AOL News. Former Teen Beauty Queen Claims She Was Forced Into Explicit Video
Afterward, Pratt allegedly pressured her to come back for more filming by threatening to release the existing footage. Text messages cited in the complaint include “I will cut and kill you” and a claim that he knew her Social Security number and home address.1404 Media. Girls Do Porn Pornhub Kristy Althaus Another reportedly read, “You better be here by noon shoot 2tomorrow or your graveyard.”3Yahoo News. Dethroned Beauty Queen Says She Was Forced Into Explicit Video
How The Videos Went Public
Althaus had been told the footage would be sold only as DVDs to private buyers outside the United States and would never appear online. In January 2014, while she was in class at college, she received a text from an unknown number that read, “Told you bitch.” A friend then told her the videos were live on Pornhub, Twitter, and other adult sites.3Yahoo News. Dethroned Beauty Queen Says She Was Forced Into Explicit Video
The videos spread quickly through her school and hometown, driven in part by GirlsDoPorn’s marketing of its content as women’s “first time” in pornography.1404 Media. Girls Do Porn Pornhub Kristy Althaus She was stripped of her Miss Teen Colorado USA title. Students harassed her at college. Strangers recognized her on the street. She developed severe anxiety, lost jobs when employers found the videos, and eventually changed her name.4The Daily Beast. Beauty Queen Says She Was Raped, Forced to Do Porn As recently as 2023, she alleged she was physically assaulted at her home by a man who identified himself as a Pornhub subscriber and confronted her about the removal of her videos from the platform.3Yahoo News. Dethroned Beauty Queen Says She Was Forced Into Explicit Video
Her Lawsuit Against Pornhub’s Parent Company
In September 2023, Althaus filed a federal civil lawsuit against Pornhub and its parent, Aylo (formerly MindGeek), in the Central District of California, seeking a jury trial. The complaint was filed under the name Jane Doe as Case No. 2:23-cv-07488. It alleges that Pornhub “knowingly and maliciously promoted, participated in, and profited from the GirlsDoPorn sex trafficking venture” by admitting the operation into the platform’s Content Partner and Premium Viewshare programs, and that it kept hosting the videos after receiving reports from victims about fraud, coercion, and threats.1404 Media. Girls Do Porn Pornhub Kristy Althaus
The court denied a defense motion to stay the case in November 2023.5CourtListener. Jane Doe v. Aylo Global Entertainment Inc., Docket In April 2024, defense attorneys asked the court to dismiss some of the claims, arguing the suit contained excessive claims and that the court lacked jurisdiction over certain defendants.6Law360. Pornhub Cos. Urge Judge to Drop Trafficking Suit Claims Aylo has declined to comment beyond saying it does not discuss active litigation. The company has maintained that GirlsDoPorn supplied written consent forms purportedly signed by the women and that Aylo was unaware the forms had been obtained through fraud and coercion.
Where The GirlsDoPorn Criminal Case Stands
The operation that filmed Althaus was prosecuted in the Southern District of California starting with a 2019 indictment. From roughly 2013 to 2017, GirlsDoPorn used fraudulent Craigslist ads and front companies such as “Bubblegum Casting” to recruit young women, most between 18 and 21, telling them the content would be sold privately overseas. Instead, it was uploaded to the company’s own sites and pushed on Pornhub, generating millions in subscription revenue.7U.S. Department of Justice. GirlsDoPorn Owner Michael Pratt Sentenced to 27 Years for Sex Trafficking Hundreds of Women
Michael Pratt fled the country after being charged, was placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, was arrested in Spain in December 2022, and was extradited to San Diego in March 2024. He pleaded guilty on June 5, 2025, to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion. On September 8, 2025, he was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison, with the judge citing the “sheer scope and magnitude” of the operation.7U.S. Department of Justice. GirlsDoPorn Owner Michael Pratt Sentenced to 27 Years for Sex Trafficking Hundreds of Women Co-founder Matthew Wolfe received 14 years in March 2024.8U.S. Department of Justice. Friend and Business Partner of GirlsDoPorn Owner Sentenced to 14 Years Recruiter and performer Ruben Andre Garcia received 20 years in June 2021.9Los Angeles Times. GirlsDoPorn Actor Sentenced to 20 Years in Sex Trafficking Conspiracy Four other defendants received shorter federal sentences, with the last, performer Douglas Wiederhold, sentenced on January 30, 2026.10U.S. Department of Justice. Final Charged Defendant in GirlsDoPorn Sex Trafficking Conspiracy Sentenced
Pornhub’s Separate Settlement And Federal Deal
Althaus’s suit is not the first time Pornhub’s parent has faced GirlsDoPorn accountability. In October 2021, 50 victims reached a confidential settlement with MindGeek. The plaintiffs had originally sought more than $1 million each, alleging that MindGeek continued its partnership with GirlsDoPorn despite complaints from victims about fraud and coercion.11BBC. Pornhub Owner Settles With GirlsDoPorn Victims
Separately, Aylo Holdings entered a deferred prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors to resolve a charge of engaging in unlawful monetary transactions involving sex trafficking proceeds. Prosecutors said that between 2017 and 2020, Aylo received more than $100,000 directly from GirlsDoPorn and about $764,000 in advertising payments attributable to the production company. Under the agreement, Aylo is required to pay more than $1.8 million to the government, compensate victims separately, and accept a three-year independent monitorship, after which the charge will be dismissed.12KTAL News. Pornhub Owner Agrees to Pay $1.8M and Independent Monitor to Resolve Sex Trafficking-Related Charge Althaus was not part of the 2021 civil settlement; her federal suit remains pending.