🔗 Share this article UK Adult Content Site Visits Falls Following Age Verifications, Yet Virtual Private Network Use Spikes, Reports Regulator Access to pornography platforms in the UK has decreased markedly since the enforcement of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the use of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has surged. Immediate Fall in User Figures Following Law Enforcement The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an swift fall in traffic to popular online adult platforms, including the top site in the UK. Figures indicates that visitor numbers to this site in August reached 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 markedly decreased volume than prior to the end-of-July deadline. Subsequent data suggests this slump in viewing continued past August. Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Checks Reacting to the new rules, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent geographic blocks by routing connections through another country—surged following 25 July. Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from around 650,000 users prior to the verification began. However, the regulator stated that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with current figures standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites. Young People Taking Action to Damaging Online Content Elsewhere, the regulator's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content online. Steps taken included reporting the material to the platform to blocking the user who posted it. This research was conducted before new regulations came into force that compel platforms to stop children from seeing harmful content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way teenagers encountered such content was by looking through a social media timeline, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material. Government Announce Review of Adult Content Laws Separately, the ministers announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age. “The review will investigate the efficacy of the current law in relation to making illegal, among other things, damaging portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” stated a government official. Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Regulations Advocates for tighter control of online pornography have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting young-looking adults portraying children. Proposed changes to legislation aim to: Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often filmed in environments like children’s bedrooms. Extend the offence of making an indecent image of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child. Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies indicates is often promoted by platform algorithms. Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess software designed to generate 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 measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for years offline finally apply to the online sphere.
Access to pornography platforms in the UK has decreased markedly since the enforcement of mandatory age verification earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications regulator. Concurrently, the use of specialist software designed to circumvent these blocks has surged. Immediate Fall in User Figures Following Law Enforcement The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an swift fall in traffic to popular online adult platforms, including the top site in the UK. Figures indicates that visitor numbers to this site in August reached 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 markedly decreased volume than prior to the end-of-July deadline. Subsequent data suggests this slump in viewing continued past August. Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Checks Reacting to the new rules, adoption of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can circumvent geographic blocks by routing connections through another country—surged following 25 July. Usage reached a high at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from around 650,000 users prior to the verification began. However, the regulator stated that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with current figures standing at around 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than user numbers for pornography sites. Young People Taking Action to Damaging Online Content Elsewhere, the regulator's annual study found that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had acted after encountering harmful content online. Steps taken included reporting the material to the platform to blocking the user who posted it. This research was conducted before new regulations came into force that compel platforms to stop children from seeing harmful content, including material related to suicide and pornography. The most common way teenagers encountered such content was by looking through a social media timeline, suggesting that algorithms were showing harmful material. Government Announce Review of Adult Content Laws Separately, the ministers announced it would review the criminal law relating to pornography to consider whether it is “fit for purpose” in the modern digital age. “The review will investigate the efficacy of the current law in relation to making illegal, among other things, damaging portrayals of familial abuse and any forms of pornography which encourage child sexual abuse,” stated a government official. Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Regulations Advocates for tighter control of online pornography have urged the government to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting young-looking adults portraying children. Proposed changes to legislation aim to: Prohibit pornography where performers are impersonating children, often filmed in environments like children’s bedrooms. Extend the offence of making an indecent image of a child to cover material where an adult plays the role of a child. Apply tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies indicates is often promoted by platform algorithms. Introduce further restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an offence to possess software designed to generate 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 measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for years offline finally apply to the online sphere.