UK Pornography Site Visits Declines Following Identity Verifications, But VPN Use Surges, States Watchdog
Access to adult content platforms in the UK has decreased markedly after the introduction of age-checking measures earlier this year, as reported by the country's communications watchdog. Concurrently, the usage of tools designed to circumvent these blocks has risen.
Immediate Fall in User Figures After Law Implementation
The enforcement of age verification on 25 July led to an immediate fall in traffic to major pornography sites, including the leading site in the UK. Figures indicates that visitor numbers to this site in August reached 9.8 million, a decrease 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 settled at a markedly decreased volume than prior to the late July deadline. Later data shows this decline in viewing persisted beyond August.
Sharp Increase in Virtual Private Network Adoption to Evade Restrictions
In response to the new rules, adoption of VPN software—which can bypass geographic blocks by routing connections through another nation—more than doubled after 25 July.
Usage peaked at more than 1.4 million in the middle of August, up from around 650,000 users before the verification began. However, the regulator stated that VPN usage has afterwards decreased, with latest numbers standing at approximately 900,000. It clarified that the volume of daily VPN use remains “much lower” than traffic for adult sites.
Teenagers Responding to Harmful Online Content
In other findings, the regulator's annual study revealed that about 60% of young people aged 11 to 17 had taken action after encountering distressing content on the internet. Actions included reporting the content to the site to muting the person who shared it.
This research was carried out prior to new rules took effect that require platforms to stop children from accessing harmful content, such as material related to suicide and pornography. The primary way teenagers encountered such content was by scrolling through a platform feed, indicating that algorithms were showing harmful material.
Ministers Launch Examination of Pornography Legislation
In a related development, the government stated it would review the legislation relating to pornography to consider whether it is effective in the ever-developing digital age.
“The review will look into the efficacy of the existing law in relation to making illegal, for example, damaging depictions of incest and any types of pornography which promote child sexual abuse,” said a government official.
Advocates Call For Stricter Online Regulations
Campaigners for tighter regulation of online pornography have urged the government to outlaw so-called “barely legal” material. This encompasses content featuring incest scenes or that appears to promote abuse by casting young-looking performers portraying children.
Proposed amendments to legislation seek to:
- Ban pornography where adults are impersonating children, sometimes filmed in settings like children’s bedrooms.
- Extend the crime of creating an indecent image of a child to cover material where an older performer acts the part of a child.
- Apply stricter regulation on incest-themed pornography, which studies suggests is heavily recommended by site algorithms.
- Add additional restrictions on “nudification” software, potentially making it an illegal act to possess software designed to generate private images without permission.
- Create a new, independent oversight agency to perform inspections on adult platforms and act on reports of unlawful content.
The campaigners contend that these steps would ensure the safeguards that have been enforced for years in the physical world finally are extended to the digital age.
