UK Pornography Site Visits Falls After Age Checks, But Virtual Private Network Use Spikes, States Watchdog
Access to pornography sites in the UK has seen a notable drop after the introduction of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications regulator. Simultaneously, the usage of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has risen.
Immediate Drop in User Numbers After Law Implementation
The introduction of age vetting on 25 July resulted in an prompt reduction in visits to leading pornography sites, including the most visited provider in the UK. Figures shows that user traffic to this platform in August stood at 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
In total, traffic to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than prior to the late July implementation date. Subsequent analysis shows this slump in site visits persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Bypass Restrictions
Reacting to the new rules, adoption of VPN software—which can circumvent location-based blocks by routing connections via another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.
User numbers reached a high at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, rising from around 650,000 people prior to the checks began. Subsequently, the watchdog noted that VPN usage has since decreased, with current figures standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for adult services.
Teenagers Responding to Harmful Online Content
In other findings, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing damaging content online. Actions ranged from reporting the content to the platform to muting the user who shared it.
This survey was carried out before new rules took effect that compel social media companies to stop children from accessing dangerous content, such as material related to self-harm and pornography. The most common way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, indicating that recommendation systems were serving harmful material.
Government Announce Review of Pornography Laws
Separately, the government stated it would examine the criminal law governing pornography to assess whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age.
“The review will look into the effectiveness of the current law in regarding criminalising, among other things, damaging portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” said a government official.
Campaigners Push For Stricter Digital Controls
Campaigners for better regulation of adult content have called on the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by using young-looking adults dressed as children.
Proposed amendments to government bills aim to:
- Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, sometimes recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Introduce stricter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research indicates is heavily recommended by site algorithms.
- Add additional controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Establish a new, independent regulatory body to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to reports of illegal content.
The advocates argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have existed for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.
