UK Adult Content Site Visits Falls Following Identity Checks, Yet VPN Usage Spikes, States Watchdog
Access to pornography websites in the United Kingdom has fallen significantly since the roll-out of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the country's communications watchdog. Simultaneously, the usage of specialist software designed to circumvent these barriers has surged.
Immediate Drop in User Numbers After Rule Implementation
The enforcement of age verification on 25 July led to an prompt fall in visits to leading online adult platforms, including the most visited provider in the UK. Data reveals that visitor numbers to this site in August were 9.8 million, a drop of 1.5 million compared to the equivalent month in 2024.
In total, visitor numbers to the 10 top adult services in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July deadline. Subsequent analysis suggests this decline in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Bypass Checks
In response to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can bypass location-based restrictions by routing internet traffic via another nation—increased dramatically following 25 July.
Usage reached a high at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from around 650,000 people before the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has afterwards fallen back, with current figures standing at approximately 900,000. It added that the volume of regular VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult sites.
Teenagers Responding to Damaging Online Content
Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had acted after seeing harmful content online. Steps taken ranged from flagging the material to the platform to muting the user who posted it.
This research was conducted prior to new rules took effect that require social media companies to stop children from seeing dangerous content, such as material related to self-harm and pornography. The most common way teenagers encountered such content was by looking through a platform feed, indicating that algorithms were serving harmful material.
Government Launch Review of Pornography Laws
In a related development, the government announced it would review the criminal law governing pornography to assess 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, among other things, harmful portrayals of familial abuse and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.
Campaigners Call For Stricter Digital Controls
Advocates for tighter control 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 casting young-looking performers dressed as children.
Suggested amendments to government bills seek to:
- Ban pornography where adults are mimicking children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of making an exploitative portrayal of a child to include material where an adult acts the part of a child.
- Introduce tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which research suggests is often promoted by site systems.
- Add additional restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess software designed to create non-consensual nude images.
- Create a new, separate oversight agency to conduct spot checks on adult platforms and respond to complaints of unlawful content.
The campaigners argue that these measures would ensure the protections that have existed for years offline finally are extended to the online sphere.
