UK Pornography Site Visits Falls Following Age Verifications, Yet VPN Use Surges, Reports Watchdog
Access to adult content platforms in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, according to the nation's communications authority. At the same time, the usage of specialist software designed to dodge these barriers has risen.
Immediate Fall in User Figures Following Rule Enforcement
The introduction of age verification on 25 July led to an prompt decline in traffic to major online adult platforms, such as the leading site in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
Overall, traffic to the ten top pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July implementation date. Later analysis indicates this decline in site visits persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Restrictions
Reacting to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent location-based restrictions by routing internet traffic through another nation—more than doubled after 25 July.
User numbers peaked at over 1.4 million in mid-August, rising from approximately 650,000 users prior to the verification began. Subsequently, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has since decreased, with current numbers at around 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for adult services.
Young People Taking Action to Damaging Material
In other findings, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content online. Actions included flagging the material to the platform to blocking the user who shared it.
This survey was carried out prior to new regulations took effect that compel platforms to stop children from accessing harmful content, including material related to self-harm and adult material. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were serving inappropriate material.
Ministers Launch Review of Adult Content Laws
Separately, the government stated it would examine the legislation relating to pornography to assess whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age.
“The examination will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in regarding making illegal, for example, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.
Advocates Push For Stricter Digital Controls
Advocates for better regulation of online pornography have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring incest scenes or that encourages abuse by casting young-looking adults dressed as children.
Proposed amendments to legislation aim to:
- Ban pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an older performer plays the role of a child.
- Introduce tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is often promoted by site algorithms.
- Add further controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own software designed to create private images without permission.
- Establish a new, independent oversight agency to conduct spot checks on adult platforms and act on reports of illegal content.
The campaigners argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.
