UK Pornography Site Visits Declines After Identity Verifications, But Virtual Private Network Usage Surges, States Regulator
Access to adult content sites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, according to the country's communications authority. At the same time, the use of specialist software designed to dodge these blocks has risen.
Sharp Drop in Visitor Numbers After Law Implementation
The enforcement of age verification on 25 July led to an immediate decline in traffic to leading online adult platforms, such as the most visited site in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million compared to the equivalent month in 2024.
Overall, visitor numbers to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than before the late July deadline. Later analysis shows this slump in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in VPN Usage to Bypass Checks
In response to the new regulations, adoption of VPN software—which can bypass geographic blocks by masking connections via another country—surged following 25 July.
User numbers peaked at over 1.4 million in mid-August, up from around 650,000 users before the checks began. However, the watchdog stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with latest numbers at around 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for pornography sites.
Young People Responding to Harmful Material
Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing distressing content online. Actions ranged from flagging the content to the site to blocking the person who shared it.
This survey was conducted prior to new regulations took effect that require social media companies to stop children from accessing dangerous content, including material related to self-harm and adult material. The most common way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a platform timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were serving inappropriate material.
Ministers Launch Examination of Adult Content Laws
Separately, the government stated it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is adequate in the ever-developing digital age.
“The review will investigate the efficacy of the existing law in relation to criminalising, for example, damaging portrayals of incest and any forms of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” stated a justice minister.
Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Regulations
Advocates for better regulation of online pornography have urged the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring simulated familial abuse or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by casting youthful adults portraying children.
Proposed changes to government bills aim to:
- Prohibit pornography where adults are impersonating children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of making an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer plays the role of a child.
- Apply stricter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is often promoted by platform systems.
- Add additional controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to own software designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, independent regulatory body to perform inspections on adult platforms and act on reports of unlawful content.
The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades offline finally are extended to the online sphere.
