UK Pornography Site Visits Falls After Identity Verifications, Yet VPN Use Surges, States Watchdog

Access to adult content websites in the United Kingdom has seen a notable drop since the roll-out of age-checking measures this summer, as reported by the nation's communications regulator. At the same time, the adoption of specialist software designed to circumvent these restrictions has risen.

Immediate Drop in User Numbers Following Law Implementation

The enforcement of age verification on 25 July caused an immediate fall in visits to popular online adult platforms, such as the top provider in the UK. Figures indicates that user traffic to this platform in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from the same period in 2024.

In total, visitor numbers to the 10 top pornography sites in the UK have now settled at a markedly decreased volume than before the late July implementation date. Subsequent analysis suggests this slump in site visits persisted past August.

Surge in Virtual Private Network Usage to Evade Checks

In response to the new regulations, use of Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)—which can get around geographic restrictions by routing connections through another country—surged after 25 July.

Usage peaked at over 1.4 million in the middle of August, rising from approximately 650,000 people before the checks began. Subsequently, the regulator stated that VPN usage has since decreased, with current figures at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than user numbers for adult sites.

Young People Responding to Harmful Online Content

Elsewhere, the regulator's report revealed that about 60% of teenagers aged 11 to 17 had taken action after encountering damaging content on the internet. Actions ranged from flagging the material to the platform to muting the person who shared it.

This survey was conducted before new rules took effect that compel platforms to prevent children from seeing dangerous content, including material related to self-harm and pornography. The primary way young people encountered such content was by scrolling through a social media timeline, indicating that recommendation systems were showing harmful material.

Government Announce Review of Pornography Laws

In a related development, the government stated it would review the legislation governing pornography to assess whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age.

“The examination will look into the efficacy of the existing law in relation to criminalising, for example, harmful depictions of incest and any forms of pornography which promote the abuse of children,” stated a government official.

Advocates Call For Tighter Digital Regulations

Campaigners for tighter regulation of online pornography have called on the authorities to ban so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote child sexual abuse by using youthful performers dressed as children.

Proposed changes to government bills aim to:

• Ban pornography where adults are mimicking children, often recorded in settings like children’s bedrooms.
• Broaden the offence of making an indecent image of a child to include material where an older performer plays the role of a child.
• Introduce tighter controls on incest-themed pornography, which studies indicates is often promoted by platform algorithms.
• Add additional controls on “nudification” technology, potentially making it an illegal act to possess tools designed to generate non-consensual nude images.
• Establish a new, separate oversight agency to perform spot checks on pornography sites and act on reports of illegal content.

The campaigners argue that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for decades in the physical world finally are extended to the online sphere.