UK Adult Content Site Visits Declines Following Identity Checks, Yet Virtual Private Network Use Surges, States Regulator
Access to adult content platforms in the United Kingdom has fallen significantly since the introduction of mandatory age verification earlier this year, according to the nation's communications authority. Concurrently, the adoption of tools designed to dodge these barriers has risen.
Immediate Fall in Visitor Figures After Law Enforcement
The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July led to an prompt fall in traffic to popular pornography sites, including the most visited provider in the UK. Data reveals that user traffic to this site in August stood at 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.
Overall, visitor numbers to the 10 most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now stabilized at a “lower level” than before the end-of-July implementation date. Subsequent analysis indicates this downward trend in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Usage to Evade Checks
In response to the new regulations, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around geographic restrictions by masking connections through another country—surged after 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in mid-August, up from approximately 650,000 people prior to the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator stated that VPN usage has since fallen back, with current numbers at around 900,000. It added that the level of daily VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for pornography sites.
Young People Taking Action to Damaging Online Content
Elsewhere, the watchdog's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content online. Actions ranged from reporting the content to the site to muting the user who shared it.
This research was carried out prior to new rules took effect that require platforms to prevent children from accessing harmful content, including material related to suicide and adult material. The primary way teenagers came across such content was by scrolling through a platform feed, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material.
Ministers Announce Examination of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the government announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is effective in the modern digital age.
“The review will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in regarding criminalising, among other things, harmful depictions of familial abuse and any types of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” said a government official.
Campaigners Call For Stricter Digital Regulations
Campaigners for tighter control of online pornography have urged the authorities to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by using youthful adults portraying children.
Proposed changes to government bills aim to:
- Ban pornography where performers are mimicking children, often filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Broaden the crime of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child.
- Introduce stricter regulation on familial abuse pornography, which studies suggests is often promoted by site algorithms.
- Introduce further controls on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess software designed to generate private images without permission.
- Create a new, independent regulatory body to conduct spot checks on pornography sites and respond to reports of illegal content.
The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the protections that have existed for years offline finally are extended to the online sphere.