UK Pornography Site Visits Declines After Identity Checks, Yet Virtual Private Network Usage Spikes, Reports Watchdog
Visitor numbers to pornography platforms in the United Kingdom has decreased markedly after the introduction of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the nation's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the adoption of tools designed to dodge these barriers has risen.
Sharp Fall in User Figures After Rule Implementation
The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July led to an immediate fall in visits to leading pornography sites, including the leading provider in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million from the equivalent month in 2024.
In total, traffic to the 10 most-visited adult services in the UK have now stabilized at a markedly decreased volume than before the end-of-July implementation date. Later analysis suggests this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.
Surge in VPN Usage to Bypass Restrictions
In response to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass location-based blocks by routing internet traffic through another country—surged after 25 July.
User numbers reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 users prior to the checks were introduced. Subsequently, the regulator stated that VPN usage has afterwards steadily declined, with latest numbers standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites.
Teenagers Responding to Damaging Material
Elsewhere, the watchdog's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering distressing content on the internet. Steps taken included reporting the material to the platform to blocking the user who posted it.
This research was carried out prior to new regulations took effect that require platforms to stop children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material.
Government Announce Examination of Adult Content Laws
Separately, the ministers stated it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to consider whether it is adequate in the modern digital age.
“The review will look into the efficacy of the current law in regarding criminalising, for example, harmful portrayals of incest and any types of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” stated a government official.
Campaigners Push For Tighter Online Controls
Advocates for tighter regulation of adult content have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by using young-looking performers portraying children.
Suggested changes to government bills seek to:
- Ban pornography where performers are mimicking children, often filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the offence of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Apply tighter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research suggests is often promoted by site systems.
- Introduce additional controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to create private images without permission.
- Create a new, separate regulatory body to perform inspections on pornography sites and respond to reports of unlawful content.
The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the protections that have been enforced for years in the physical world finally apply to the online sphere.
