UK Pornography Site Visits Declines After Age Checks, Yet Virtual Private Network Use Spikes, Reports Watchdog
Access to pornography platforms in the UK has seen a notable drop after the roll-out of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications regulator. Simultaneously, the usage of tools designed to bypass these barriers has risen.
Immediate Fall in Visitor Numbers After Rule Enforcement
The introduction of age vetting on 25 July resulted in an prompt decline in traffic to major online adult platforms, such as the leading site in the UK. Figures reveals that user traffic to this platform in August stood at 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million compared to the same period in 2024.
Overall, visitor numbers to the ten most-visited adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a significantly reduced level than prior to the late July implementation date. Later data shows this downward trend in site visits persisted beyond August.
Surge in Virtual Private Network Usage to Bypass Checks
In response to the new regulations, use of VPN software—which can bypass location-based blocks by routing internet traffic via another nation—surged after 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 users before the verification were introduced. However, the regulator noted that VPN usage has afterwards fallen back, with current figures at approximately 900,000. It added that the level of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for pornography sites.
Teenagers Responding to Damaging Material
Elsewhere, the watchdog's report found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing distressing content on the internet. Actions included flagging the content to the site to muting the person who shared it.
This survey was conducted prior to new rules took effect that compel social media companies to stop children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The primary way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform feed, indicating that recommendation systems were serving harmful material.
Government Announce Examination of Pornography Laws
In a related development, the ministers announced it would review the criminal law governing pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the ever-developing digital age.
“The examination will investigate the effectiveness of the existing law in relation to making illegal, for example, damaging depictions of familial abuse and any types of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” stated a justice minister.
Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Controls
Advocates for tighter regulation of adult content have urged the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote abuse by using young-looking performers dressed as children.
Proposed changes to legislation seek to:
- Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the crime of making an indecent image of a child to include material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by platform systems.
- Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess software designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Establish a new, independent oversight agency to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and act on reports of unlawful content.
The campaigners argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have existed for years offline finally are extended to the digital age.
