🔗 Share this article British Adult Content Site Visits Declines Following Age Checks, Yet VPN Usage Surges, States Regulator Access to adult content sites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the country's communications regulator. At the same time, the adoption of tools designed to circumvent these restrictions has surged. Immediate Drop in Visitor Figures After Rule Enforcement The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July caused an swift reduction in traffic to popular pornography sites, such as the most visited provider in the UK. Data shows that visitor numbers to this site in August were 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024. In total, visitor numbers to the 10 most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July deadline. Later data shows this decline in site visits continued past August. Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Restrictions In response to the new rules, use of VPN software—which can get around geographic restrictions by routing connections through another country—more than doubled after 25 July. Usage peaked at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the verification began. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since decreased, with current figures at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for pornography services. Young People Responding to Damaging Material Elsewhere, the regulator's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the content to the site to blocking the user who posted it. This survey was carried out before new rules took effect that compel social media companies to stop children from seeing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, indicating that algorithms were showing inappropriate material. Government Announce Review of Pornography Legislation In a related development, the ministers announced it would review the legislation relating to pornography to consider whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age. “The review will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in regarding criminalising, for example, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official. Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Controls Campaigners for tighter control of online pornography have called on the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by using youthful adults dressed as children. Suggested changes to legislation aim to: Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms. Extend the crime of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an older performer plays the role of a child. Apply tighter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by site algorithms. Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to generate private images without permission. Create a new, separate oversight agency to conduct spot checks on adult platforms and act on complaints of illegal content. The advocates argue that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.
Access to adult content sites in the UK has seen a notable drop since the introduction of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the country's communications regulator. At the same time, the adoption of tools designed to circumvent these restrictions has surged. Immediate Drop in Visitor Figures After Rule Enforcement The enforcement of age vetting on 25 July caused an swift reduction in traffic to popular pornography sites, such as the most visited provider in the UK. Data shows that visitor numbers to this site in August were 9.8 million, a decline of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024. In total, visitor numbers to the 10 most-visited pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a significantly reduced level than before the end-of-July deadline. Later data shows this decline in site visits continued past August. Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Restrictions In response to the new rules, use of VPN software—which can get around geographic restrictions by routing connections through another country—more than doubled after 25 July. Usage peaked at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 users before the verification began. Subsequently, the regulator noted that VPN usage has since decreased, with current figures at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of regular VPN use is “much lower” than traffic for pornography services. Young People Responding to Damaging Material Elsewhere, the regulator's report found that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after seeing distressing content online. Steps taken ranged from reporting the content to the site to blocking the user who posted it. This survey was carried out before new rules took effect that compel social media companies to stop children from seeing dangerous content, such as material related to suicide and adult material. The most common way young people came across such content was by scrolling through a social media feed, indicating that algorithms were showing inappropriate material. Government Announce Review of Pornography Legislation In a related development, the ministers announced it would review the legislation relating to pornography to consider whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age. “The review will investigate the effectiveness of the current law in regarding criminalising, for example, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official. Advocates Push For Tighter Digital Controls Campaigners for tighter control of online pornography have called on the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This includes content featuring simulated familial abuse or that encourages child sexual abuse by using youthful adults dressed as children. Suggested changes to legislation aim to: Prohibit pornography where adults are mimicking children, often recorded in environments like children’s bedrooms. Extend the crime of creating an exploitative portrayal of a child to cover material where an older performer plays the role of a child. Apply tighter controls on familial abuse pornography, which research suggests is heavily recommended by site algorithms. Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to own tools designed to generate private images without permission. Create a new, separate oversight agency to conduct spot checks on adult platforms and act on complaints of illegal content. The advocates argue that these measures would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades offline finally apply to the online sphere.